Environmental rehabilitation and enhancement in Valle Vecchia

Valle Vecchia is the only undeveloped stretch of north Adriatic coastline. Valle Vecchia is not a park, but something more!

 

The lagoon oasis of Valle Vecchia, between the Tagliamento and Livenza rivers, represents a typical situation of the Veneto coastal environment. It is characterised by over 4 kilometres of sandy coastline and an agrarian hinterland obtained by reclaiming the pre-existing brackish lagoon areas. The soils are sandy and clayey, with frequent infiltration of brackish water.

 

In Valle Vecchia, large areas of lagoons and bodies of water preserve the characteristics of the ancient layout of the territory as it was before the land reclamation in the 1960s. It is precisely because of its environmental characteristics and the presence of habitats such as the sand dunes and the woods behind them, which host exceptional biodiversity in a restricted area, that Valle Vecchia has been recognised as a Special Protection Area and Special Area of Conservation in the European Community's Natura 2000 Network.

 

Today, out of a total of over 800 hectares, almost half are occupied by areas of great naturalistic value: 63 hectares of coastal pine forest, 100 hectares of coastal lowland woods, 68 hectares of wetlands and approximately 24 km of hedges.

Between the sandy shore and the pine forest there is one of the largest coastal dune systems in the Veneto region, which is being redeveloped as part of the LIFE REDUNE Project.

 

Due to its environmental value, Valle Vecchia, already popular with beach tourism due to its long sandy coastline free of establishments, is also a destination for nature, educational and scientific tourism.

Numerous well-equipped paths, which can be followed on foot, by bicycle or on horseback, allow visitors to appreciate an area rich in valuable habitats and to discover how innovation, research and experimentation in agriculture, the environment and biodiversity coexist and complement each other.

 

Valle Vecchia is not only beach and sea, in factit is home to one of the most important regional farms managed by the Agenzia veneta per l'innovazione in agricoltura Veneto Agricoltura. A farm devoted entirely to experimentation and demonstration of the most advanced agricultural techniques with low environmental impact. Valle Vecchia practises an agriculture capable of combining income, quality and respect for the environment.

Agriculture is an important part of the environmental mosaic, since the fields and cultivated areas surrounded by woods and hedges are an ideal place for resting, grazing and living for wildlife.

 

The alternation of cultivated areas, woodlands and fresh and salty wetlands, which characterises the landscape of this farm, favours biodiversity. There are numerous animal species. In particular, birds, of which there are more than 250 species, i.e. almost 50% of those found in Italy. Mammals include badgers, foxes, stone martens, weasels, roe deer, fallow deer, squirrels and various species of bats. There are many insects, especially lepidopterans, with some very rare and endemic species.

 

In this area of regional property, over a period of about twenty years, numerous European agricultural, forestry and environmental research projects have been implemented, enabling the creation of one of the most important Italian examples of environmental redevelopment and enhancement..

 

 

Sources:

http://www.caorle.com/it/caorle/brussa-vallevecchia.html

Equestrian map of Vallevecchia - Veneto Agricoltura

Acknowledgements:for the text Dott.ssa Giovanna Bullo - Veneto Agricoltura

for the photo: Dr. Sandrino Colavitti - Veneto Agricoltura