Ecological Corridor - Via San Paolo

1. General information

Location and description of the intervention

City or FUA

Cagliari (FUA)

Region

Europe

Native title of the NBS intervention

Corridodio ecologico tra via San Paolo e la laguna di Santa Gilla

Short description of the intervention

Historically, the area of San Paolo in Cagliari has suffered from environmental degradation and illegal dumping, making it an unsightly entrance to the city. In 2022, the Città Metropolitana di Cagliari, initiated a project to transform this degraded area into a urban park featuring 7,000 new plants, including olive trees, junipers, lentisks, myrtle, rosemary, tamarisks, and Aleppo pines. Managed by the municiplaity of Cagliari, and funded by a €500,000 grant from the Ministry of Ecological Transition, this initiative will cover 4.7 hectares between Via San Paolo and the Santa Gilla Lagoon, creating a natural corridor connecting the city to the lagoon. The project aims not only to restore the land but also to enhance both metropolitan and municipal environmental requalification plans.
A multidisciplinary team, including a forestry technician, agronomist, and biologist, developed the project to ensure it is environmentally sustainable and suited to the local ecosystem.
The work on the project began in June of 2022 with land preparation, removal of invasive species, and waste collection, resulting in the clearing of over 5 tons of rubbish. By December, around 3,000 plants had already been planted, with the remaining work, including the installation of an irrigation system, scheduled for completion by January 2023. The selected plant species are fast-growing, and within two years, the shrubs are expected to reach a height of about two meters. The park is planned to open to the public in 2024, providing a new green space for walking and outdoor activities.
The San Paolo urban park project has encountered obstacles, mainly due to the expropriation of buildings, leading to legal disputes, permit delays, and a temporary halt caused by a tender-related issue. The site is currently overgrown and unused, showing clear signs of neglect. (Refs. 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5).

Website of the intervention

https://www.cittametropolitanacagliari.it/portale/page/it/cagliari_al_via_la_fo…

Principal problems

Environmental Degradation

Invasive alien species

Deforestation and forest degradation

Soil degradation and loss

Land use and Socio-economic change

Limited economic opportunities and local livelihoods

Health, Well-being and Social cohesion

Inadequate access to recreational opportunities

Implementation area characterization

Climate

Temperate ( Humid subtropical, Hot-summer Mediterranean, Warm-summer Mediterranean, Warm-temperate with dry winter)

Ecosystem

Temperate grasslands

Address

Via S. Paolo
09123 Cagliari
Italy

Location

The NBS is situated in an area, with clear delineation of boundaries and a specific shape (polygon). The NBS project can also have more than one area location (more than one polygon, situated close by).

Area boundary (map-based)

NBS area image

Source of NBS area image

Comune di Cagliari. 2022. “Variante Urbanistica Area San Paolo per La Realizzazione Del Parco Urbano Attrezzato Sportivo Ed Educativo.” Comune Di Cagliari. 2022. https://www.comune.cagliari.it/portale/page/it/variante_urbanistica_area_san_paolo_per_la_realizzazione_del_parco_urbano_attrezzato_sportivo_ed_educativo?contentId=NVT115906.

Total area

4700.00m²

NBS area

4700.00m²

Area description

Urban (main city)

Type of area before implementation of the NBS

Previous derelict area

Vacant or abandoned land

Timeline of intervention

Start date of the intervention (planning process)

2020

Start date of intervention (implementation process)

2022

End date of the intervention

ongoing

Present stage of the intervention

Ongoing

2. Objectives of the intervention

Objectives of the intervention

Goals of the intervention

1. To transform a neglected, degraded space into an urban park and a valuable community and environmental asset
2. By planting native trees and shrubs, the project seeks to create a green corridor connecting the city to the Santa Gilla Lagoon, enhancing the area's ecological health and aesthetic appeal. Fast-growing native species have been chosen to ensure that the park becomes a green oasis quickly, benefiting residents sooner.
3. To make the park accessible to the community, providing a space for walking and outdoor activities.
4. To improve the area's environmental quality and address waste management challenges by removing invasive species and over 5 tons of waste (Refs. 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5).

Key Priorities

Biodiversity (conservation and/or restoration)

Social Justice and community

Sustainability challenge(s) addressed

Environmental quality

Waste management

Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)

Green space creation and/or management

Habitat and biodiversity restoration

Regeneration, land-use and urban development

Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development

Health and well-being (SDG 3)

Creation of opportunities for recreation

Enabling opportunities for physical activity

Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)

Sense of community and community engagement

What types of restoration goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?

Species-focused

Ecosystem-focused

What activities are implemented to realize the restoration goals and targets?

Restore native species

Clear and control invasive alien species

Implementation activities and NBS focus

Implementation activities

The "Green Promenade for Cagliari’s Seafront" project began with the involvement of a multidisciplinary team that included a forestry technician, agronomist, and biologist to guide the development process. Initiated in June 2022, the first steps involved preparing the land through the removal of invasive species and waste. By early December, the planting phase was underway, with approximately 3,000 plants already in place.
A total of 581 plants, including wild olive, Phoenician juniper, mastic, yarrow, broom, myrtle, and rosemary, were planted. In addition, 819 fast-growing Aleppo pines were introduced to provide shade, while areas near roads with higher pollutant levels were reforested with 2,114 tamarisk trees. The installation of an irrigation system, essential for sustaining the greenery, was completed by January 2023.
The final phase of the project will see the development of an accessible urban park with walkways and spaces for outdoor activities, making it a valuable green space for the community. Over 16 workers are expected to maintain the park's efficiency and long-term sustainability (Refs. 1, 2, 3 & 4).

Type of NBS project

Creation of new green areas

Creation of green corridors (including connectivity between urban and rural ecosystems)

Creation of large parks and urban and peri-urban forests

Ecological restoration of ecosystems

Remediation activities of sites with very poor environmental quality

Protection of natural ecosystems

Habitat restoration

Transformation of previously derelict areas

Transformation of vacant land into green spaces

3. NBS domains, ES and scale

NBS domain and interventions

Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented

Parks and urban forests

Large urban parks or forests

Green corridors and green belts

Amenities offered by the NBS

Benches and drinking water stations

Playgrounds

Sports areas and equipment

Educational or biodiversity trails

Complementing infrastructure (bathrooms, café)

Design elements for well-being

None of the above

Services

Expected ecosystem services delivered

Habitat and supporting services

Habitats for species

Cultural services

Recreation

Mental and physical health and wellbeing

Social and community interactions

Scale

Spatial scale

Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level

Beneficiaries

Demographics in implementation area

The project develops in the Sant’Avendrace - Santa Gilla neighborhood, which had, in 2022, 7,176 inhabitants (around 4.8% of the total population of Cagliari). The average age is around 50 years old, which is distributed in different age groups as follows:
1. 0-14: 586 (8%)
2. 15-64: 4.616 (64%)
3. over 65: 1.974 (28%)

The neighborhood is characterized by moderate emigration or immigration flows. In fact, the foreign population accounts for 8% of its total population. Most of the foreigners in the area come from China, Senegal or Pakistan.
54% of the households in the neighborhood are composed of 1 single person, 24% of 2 people, 14% of 3, 6% of 4, 1% of 5, and less than 1% of 6 or more people (Ref. 12).

Socio-economic profile of the area

Mixed income

Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts

Primary Beneficiaries

Citizens or community groups

Young people and children

Specify primary beneficiaries

The primary beneficiaries of the San Paolo area project in Cagliari are the local residents and the broader community. These citizens will gain access to a new urban green space, improving their quality of life by providing a pleasant environment for outdoor activities, relaxation, and physical exercise. Thanks to the sports area and the playgrounds and recreation areas near the site, young people and children will also benefit (Refs. 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5).

Marginalized groups

Elderly people

Measures for inclusion of marginalised groups

The San Paolo urban park will cater to the elderly by including fitness trails for gentle exercise and bocce courts for recreation and socialization. These features aim to promote physical activity and community engagement among older adults (Ref. 7).

Other beneficiaries

Native plant vegetation

Public health (e.g. increased physical activity opportunities, reduced stress)

4. Governance and financing

Governance

Governance arrangements

Government-led

Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative

The main actors of the San Paolo area project in Cagliari include:
1. Città Metropolitana di Cagliari: The metropolitan city government, responsible for overseeing the project's implementation and ensuring its alignment with broader urban planning and environmental goals.
2. Ministero della Transizione Ecologica: The Italian Ministry of Ecological Transition, which provided a significant portion of the funding for the project, ensuring its focus on environmental sustainability.
3. Multidisciplinary Team of Professionals working on behalf of the municipality: This team includes a forest technician, an agronomist, and a biologist, who collectively provided the expertise needed to design and implement the project's various environmental and ecological aspects (Refs. 1, 2 & 4).
Funding: the project was co-funded by the Italian government (13)

Key actors - initiating organization

Local government/municipality

Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)

National government

Participatory methods/forms of stakeholder involvement (all stakeholders)

Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)

Taskforce groups

Uncommon actors ("Missing actors")

Unknown

Land owners

Public space owned by the city

Policy drivers

NBS intervention implemented in response to a Regional Directive/Strategy

Unknown

NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan

Unknown

NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan

Unknown

Mandatory or voluntary intervention

Unknown

Enablers & Barriers

Type of enablers

Funds, subsidies or investment for GI/NBS in the city (available for the city or provided by the city)

Please provide details (e.g, name of the plan or strategy) for the selected policies or initiatives.

The ministry for the ecological transition (Ministero della Transizione Ecologica) provided 500.000€ for the implementation of the project Refs. 1, 2, 3 & 4).

Governace and decison-making instruments

Economic and fiscal instruments (e.g. subsidies or grants, charges or fees, payments for ecosystem services (PES))

Arrangements for governance cooperation

Task forces or commissions (e.g. group of multi-disciplinary experts)

Barriers

The San Paolo urban park project in Cagliari has faced several obstacles, primarily due to the expropriation of buildings within the area. This process led to legal disputes and delays, particularly concerning necessary permits. These legal challenges caused interruptions in the project's timeline, including a temporary halt due to a tender-related legal dispute.
While progress has been made, with about 70% of the work completed, not all buildings in the area are included in the current project. Certain structures will remain, potentially affecting the park's overall cohesion. The project is expected to resume by November 2023, with completion anticipated by December 2023, though further revisions may be needed to ensure its success (Refs. 6, 8, 9, 10 & 11).

Financing

Total cost

€100,000 - €500,000

Please specify total cost (EUR)

€481,000 (Ref. 3).

What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?

Unknown

Source(s) of funding

Public local authority budget

Public national budget

Type of fund(s) used

Earmarked public budget

Non-financial contribution

Unknown

Co-finance for NBS

Entrepreneurship opportunities

Unknown

What types of actors are leading the entrepreneurship activities linked to the NBS project?

Unknown

What types of support are provided to entrepreneurs engaged in NBS-related activities?

Unknown

Business models

Green densification model

Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?

Public actor (e.g. municipality)

5. Evaluation and learning

Impacts, benefits

Environmental impacts

Environmental quality

Improved waste management

Achieved improved waste management

Green space and habitat

Increased number of species present

Achieved increased number of species present

Improved prevention or control of invasive alien species

Expected improved prevention or control of invasive alien species

Description of environmental benefits

- Improved waste management: "Work began last June with [...] waste collection." (Ref. 1) & "More than 5 tons of waste were collected in the cleanup." (Ref. 1)
- Increased number of species present: "Cagliari's degraded San Paolo area will soon be an urban park, with 7,000 new plants that will include wild olive trees, junipers, mastic trees, broom, myrtle, ilatro, rosemary, tamarisks and Aleppo pines." (Ref. 1)
- Improved prevention or control of invasive alien species: "Work began last June with [...] alien species abatement." (Ref. 1)
-Increased green area: "The area subject to forestation, owned by the state (State, Region and Casic) and located in the Municipality of Cagliari in the San Paolo area between the new Via San Paolo and the Santa Gilla Lagoon, concerns a surface area of 4.7 hectares with highly degraded natural vegetation." (1)

Environmental impact indicators

Total number of vascular plant species protected or introduced

Green space area created (in ha)

4.7

Total area of habitat restored (in ha)

4.7

Economic impacts

Increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)

Achieved increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)

Expected increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)

Attraction of business and investment

Expected attraction of business and investment

Description of economic benefits

- Increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions): "Overall, more than 16 workers, direct and indirect, are expected to be used at full capacity to maintain the park, which will be open every day of the year with varying hours depending on the season." (Ref. 7)
- Attraction of business and investment: "Maintenance of the garden will come from revenues from the two planned facilities: a garden center and a café/restaurant outlet. In the first will be held courses and events on green issues (plant care and maintenance and garden creation and maintenance) and a retail sale of products related to green care will be operated. A second space will be used as a bar/restaurant point, with food and beverage preparation and serving all park goers." (Ref. 7)

Economic impact indicators

Number of jobs created (e.g. park maintenance, landscaping, ecotourism)

Number of businesses attracted by the NBS (number)

Social and cultural impact indicators

Surface area of accessible green spaces (in ha)

4.7

Evidence for use of assessment

Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process

Unknown

Presence of indicators used in reporting

No evidence in public records

Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports

No evidence in public records

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

No evidence in public records

Name of any specific impact assessment tools

unknown

Use of GIS in mapping impacts

No evidence in public records

Cost-benefit analysis

Unknown

Transparency

Clear communication channels for stakeholders to provide feedback, raise concerns, and ask questions about the project

Public disclosure of project funding sources and/or budgets

Online disclosure of technical reports (e.g. project documents, reports, or data)

Justice

Community satisfaction

Mixed: Feedback and reports show a combination of positive and negative sentiments regarding satisfaction with the NBS project within the community.

Description of locals satisfaction with the project

The public perception of the San Paolo urban park project is mixed due to several reasons. While the project aims to transform a degraded area into a valuable urban space, significant delays and complications have hindered its progress. Issues such as expropriations, claims of adverse possession, legal disputes, and obvious delays have caused frustration among the public, as the park has yet to be completed.
The site currently remains undeveloped and neglected, with visible signs of abandonment like waste and inactivity, which contradict the promises of a revitalized urban area. The disconnect between the project's initial goals and the present state of the site has led to disappointment and a sense of unfulfilled promises, contributing to the mixed perception among the community (Refs. 7, 9, 10 & 11).

Trade-offs & Negative impacts

Other

Please specify Trade-offs & Negative impacts Selected

Expropration of commercial buildings (Refs. 7, 9, 10 & 11).

Measures to prevent gentrification or displacement

Affordable housing provisions or rent control measures

High-quality & Transformative NBS

Multiple impacts delivery (climate, biodiversity, just community)

Goal setting and impacts delivery

No, project goals were not set, and benefits were not delivered in all 3 key areas.

Reaching original project goals

Most of the project goals were achieved

Please specify the achievements of the project goals

Biodiversity Goals:
- Improved waste management: "Work began last June with [...] waste collection." (Ref. 1) & "More than 5 tons of waste were collected in the cleanup." (Ref. 1)
- Increased number of species present: "Cagliari's degraded San Paolo area will soon be an urban park, with 7,000 new plants that will include wild olive trees, junipers, mastic trees, broom, myrtle, ilatro, rosemary, tamarisks and Aleppo pines." (Ref. 1)
- Improved prevention or control of invasive alien species: "Work began last June with [...] alien species abatement." (Ref. 1)
-Increased green area: "The area subject to forestation, owned by the state (State, Region and Casic) and located in the Municipality of Cagliari in the San Paolo area between the new Via San Paolo and the Santa Gilla Lagoon, concerns a surface area of 4.7 hectares with highly degraded natural vegetation." (1)
Social Justice and community Goals:
- Improved liveability: "The goal is to rehabilitate a now heavily degraded area that is a gateway to the city to transform it into an urban forest that is pleasing to the eye and available to all citizens". (Ref. 1)
- Improved access to urban green space: "The goal is to rehabilitate a now heavily degraded area that is a gateway to the city to transform it into an urban forest that is pleasing to the eye and available to all citizens." (Ref. 1)
- Increased perception of safety: "We will install the cameras." (Ref. 3) & "An adequate number of parking spaces will then allow activities to be carried out within S. Paolo Park in complete safety for the city's road system as well." (Ref. 7)

Long-term perspective

Unknown: No information about the project's long-term sustainability.

Cost-effective solutions

Unknown

Equitable impacts

B. Particular population groups have reported unequal distribution of project impacts or dissatisfaction.

Reason for unequal distribution of project benefits

Due to failing to identify problems existing in the community

Transformative capacity

Ecological change (e.g. ecosystem functions and their distribution)

Magnitude of change

Incremental: shallow; that is, mostly maintaining business-as-usual approaches to adaptation

Application of lessons learned

The NBS has been shared or used as a good practice to trigger transformative change

Perception of Environmental Change

Unknown

6. Sources

References

Città Metropolitana di Cagliari (2022). Cagliari, al via la forestazione dell’area San Paolo: in arrivo 7 mila nuove piante. Cagliari: Città Metropolitana di Cagliari, Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Agenzia Nova (2023). Sardegna: al via la forestazione dell’area San Paolo di Cagliari. Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Neri, E (2022). Svolta green a Cagliari, foresta urbana e nuovo ponte tra via San Paolo e la laguna di Santa Gilla. Casteddu Online, Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Norfo, J (2022). Cagliari, un grande parco urbano a San Paolo: in arrivo 7mila nuove piante nel nuovo polmone verde della città. Casteddu Online, Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Cagliaripad (2022). Cagliari, l’area di San Paolo diventerà il “polmone verde” della città. Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Sardegna Live (2023). Cagliari, con il vincolo espropriativo il nuovo parco di via San Paolo sarà più grande. Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Neri, E (2020). Cagliari, via al “Parco San Paolo” a Sant’Avendrace: orti, giardini e 16 posti di lavoro. Accessed on August 23, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Tutela Espropri (n.d.). Espropri area San Paolo a Cagliari. Come difendersi?. Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Unione Sarda (2024). Cagliari, via San Paolo: la storia (e la vergogna) del parco mai nato. Accessed on August 22, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

10.

Rapeanu, P (n.d.). Cagliari, le ruspe abbattono la baraccopoli di via San Paolo: sgomberato dopo anni il campo nomadi abusivo. Casteddu Online, Accessed on August 23, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

11.

Neri, E (2023). Cagliari, addio a discariche e abitazioni abusive in via San Paolo: ruspe in arrivo al campo nomadi. Accessed on August 23, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

12.

Comune di Cagliari (2022). Atlante Demografico di Cagliarari 2022. Accessed on August 23, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

13.

Italian Government (n.d.). PNRR: rivoluzione verde e transizione ecologica. Accessed on August 23, 2024, [Source link] [Archive];

Comments and notes

Public Images

New trees planted in the San Paolo area.

Neri, Ennio. 2022. “Svolta Green a Cagliari, Foresta Urbana E Nuovo Ponte Tra via San Paolo E La Laguna Di Santa Gilla - Casteddu on Line.” Casteddu on Line. December 28, 2022. https://www.castedduonline.it/svolta-green-a-cagliari-foresta-urbana-e-nuovo-ponte-tra-via-san-paolo-e-la-laguna-di-santa-gilla/.

Workers planting the new plants needed to restore the degradedarea of Via San Paolo

Jacopo Norfo. 2022. “Cagliari, Un Grande Parco Urbano a San Paolo: In Arrivo 7mila Nuove Piante Nel Nuovo Polmone Verde Della Città - Casteddu on Line.” Casteddu on Line. December 28, 2022. https://www.castedduonline.it/cagliari-un-grande-parco-urbano-a-san-paolo-in-arrivo-7mila-nuove-piante-nel-nuovo-polmone-verde-della-citta/.