Sellustra Life project

Environmental monitoring

The project includes an important monitoring activity. The monitoring will be aimed to verify the reliability of the actions undertaken, related to quality of landscape, quality of banks environment and quality of water. For each one of these aspects exist some specific indexes.

Indexes	Description
RCE 2 + IAR Riparian, Channel, Environment Inventory	Used for the evaluation of riparian landscape. It is modified whit a specific index (IAR) for the evaluation of human activity
ELI Environment Landscape Index	Gives an evaluation of the visual quality of environment
I.B.E. Extended Biotic Index	"Biological" index, based on study macrozoobenthonic community, used for the evaluation of water quality
Leaf packs or bags	It supplies measurement of the speed of decomposition of leaf submerged in water and as a method for the evaluation of the complex effect of several biochemical parameters of the water
WSI Wild State Index	Measurement of the "naturality" of the banks and the potential of the banks for sustaining high levels of biodiversity
BSI Buffer Strips Index	Direct measurement of the capability of banks in filtering, elaborating and accumulating nutrients and pollutants transported by the water flow

Buffer Strips

Buffer strips are suitable in order to prevent pollution coming from spread sources and particularly to control the flow of nitrogen from the field to the surface waters.

Because of the Rural Development plan of Region Emilia Romagna foresee specific grants for planting buffer strips, within Life project farmers will be encouraged and assisted in planting buffer strips and in requiring grants from regional administration. It is estimated that buffer strips will be planted over 75% of the total length of the Sellustra river (25 km).

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A buffer strips along Sellustra river

Bioengineering works

The project provides the building of 3 bioengineering works for controlling erosion of the soil in the basin of Sellustra River. Bioengineering works will be carried out accordingly to data supplied by a study already completed. The works that will be realised include slopes consolidation with frame in Pinus and realisation of shores in store and planting of trees of Salix s.p. The total amount of bioengineering work will interest 1.800 m. of the Sellustra River .

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An example of bioengineering work (Foto by Iridra Srl)

Constructed Wetland

The project includes the creation of a constructed wetland with this characteristics: "Surface Flow" typology (FWS), potentiality about 1.300 equivalent inhabitants, surface about 2.300 mq., depht about 1 m, vegetation composed mainly by floating macrophitae (as. Phragmites australis and Thipha s.p.).

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Example of constructed wetland (Foto by IRIDRA S.r.l.)