The ENVIBASE-Project

Documentation / Online Handbook

Soil

Description of the Problem

The metropolitan area presents many different levels of soil occupation and settlement models: the compact city of Milan and its northern suburbs are characterised by a high level of sealed surfaces (more then 70 %) and density, whereas the southern area is characterised by urban sprawl and low density settlements within the countryside.

Milan and its surroundings were, in the past, a highly industrialised area. Since the departure of most of the industrial firms, most industrial areas are being reconverted. Most of them are large, abandoned industrial areas available for new urban uses or involved in urban renewal projects, necessitating evaluation of the state of pollution of soil and groundwater in order to define the clean-up procedures. The principal abandoned sites in the metropolitan area of Milan amount to 11,000,000 m² (city of Milan is approximately 5,000,000 m²).

Data Sources

Main data sources are geological maps, the pedology GIS, and still sporadic soil analysis of contaminated sites.

Concerning contaminated sites, a systematic cadastre of polluted soil does not yet exist, nor is there an exhaustive information system or database related to the polluted soil in the metropolitan area. Data are collected mainly through financial support requests to the region for the reclamation work, specific questionnaires that Lombardy is collecting from provinces and municipalities, denunciations or legal proceedings started by the municipalities, and elsewhere. The collection of these data is being undertaken in order to form a regional cadastre.

The Provincial Land Use Planning Department has instituted a monitoring programme of the areas not in use. It has also carried out a specific provincial GIS on the abandoned industrial sites. At the moment, they‘re not connected with the Geographical Information System of the region.

The Regional Agricultural Department is carrying out a GIS on pedology, based on the Regional Technical Map (scale: 1:10,000/25,000). So far it covers the southern side of Lombardy (Padana Valley).

Geological data are actually available only as hard copy maps for the whole regional territory. The regional Environmental Department is bringing these data up to date, and they will be organised in a database and a dedicated GIS.

Methods

Data collected by Pedology G.I.S. are based on the following parameters:

The pedological map obtained by these data characterises the different classes of soil. Maps of soil use capacity, maps that characterise other different kinds of soils and their possible uses are also available. The pedologic database and GIS were worked out by the Regional Institute for the Agricultural Development (Ente Regionale Sviluppo Agricolo.Lombardia). They are based on a methodology adopted by The U.S. Department of Agriculture: L.C.C. (Land Capability Classification) and FAO classification.

Results

The pedological GIS, the soil use capacity map and an initial organisation for cadastre of polluted sites.

Uses

The soil use capacity map is used particularly for agricultural activities, but it can be used also for other planning activities such as environmental and urban planning. Polluted sites are elaborated for the following principal uses: specific exindustrial area reuse projects, environmental planning, reclaiming works.