Protected areas and landscape conservation in the Lombardy plain (northern Italy): an appraisal

Between the 1980s and 1990s, conservation policy in Lombardy (NW Italy) was enhanced with the establishment of the Protected Areas System, which encompassed a wide area of nature reserves and regional parks. The main aim of the Protected Areas System was to preserve cultural, natural and traditional human activity over large areas affected by very rapid development processes. Currently, the Protected Areas System covers about 26% of Lombardy, and human activity within the protected areas is managed and controlled by a consistent body of rules and laws, operating in an eco-sustainable framework. The actual effect of these rules and regulations on landscape and biodiversity conservation is, however, poorly understood. The aims of this study are: (1) to describe the development of the Protected Areas System and its features in southern Lombardy between 1980 and 1994; (2) to confirm that avian species richness is higher in the Protected Areas System than in the related buffer zones; (3) to describe the role of the regulations and laws in establishing the Protected Areas System.