Sustainable City - Biodiversity

Flora

Protection and provision of ecosystems, habitat areas and the environment. See EU environmental liability directive, Green infrastructure and Progetto Biodiversità.

Due to the large, unurbanized natural areas around the town there's a huge diversity in the plant ecosystem (natural biodiversity data base of the Piedmont region). The most well known trees for the region are the chestnuts, which are unfortunately invaded by a parasite.

The Consorzio Pro Loco del Lago d'Orta e Alto Novarese together with the Pro Loco of a few towns including Coiromonte started a Biodiversity project that apart from other activities takes care of new gardening projects (Giardini della Biodiversità). The Proloco Coiromonte has a special focus on the reintroduction of the local Camomille plant (Matricaria recutita L.) and other herbs.

Problems:

• The town's chestnut trees are (like many others in Northern Italy) infected by a parasite - the chinese gall wasp (Dryocosmus kuriphilus). A few initiatives to fight the invasion were started in other regions of Italy after a model from Japan, like the establishment of breeding areas of Torymus sinensis, another parasite to fight the gall wasp. As well as the use of insecticides, which wasn't very successful in the past. Another possible approach might be the using Blue Tits which seem to have adopted to use British oak gall wasps as main food source.

• The region is also being invaded by swarms of grasshoppers (mainly Calliptamus italicus) in the summer months that are already having a negative impact on the vegetable food production and gardening projects. The Region Piedmont tested the use of Helmeted Guineafowls (Numida meleagris) to reduce the grasshopper population, which seemed to be very successful.

Status:

The search for natural and environmental friendly solutions that keep the ecosystem in balance are on the way.

The consequences of the introduction of a new non-local parasite (Torymus sinensis) into the ecosystem to solve the problem aren't fully explored yet and seem unpredictable in the long term at the moment, therefore they should be avoided if possible. The use of chemical insecticides that could have a negative effect on the ecosystem as a whole.

• Banche Dati Naturalistiche - natural biodiversity data base of the Piedmont region

Fauna

Protection and preservation of local species, ecosystems and natural habitats. See EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020.

• Active honey bee protection and growth of the local bee communities since 2010

• Wild animal protection with hunting restrictions in certain areas around the town, (without letting the population of especially the wild boars get out of hand)

• Domestic animals used in farming in the town are apart from others the Pezzata Rossa Italiana.

• Banche Dati Naturalistiche - natural biodiversity data base of the Piedmont region

• Status: further data gathering in progress