Side
Events.
Abstract
Fostered
by the Convention on Biological
Diversity (Global Strategy
for Plant Conservation,
2002) and by the New European
Strategy for Plant Conservation
(2008), the Important Plant
Areas program promotes the
identification at local
and national level of the
most important areas for
plant diversity according
to criteria including endemism,
species richness, and/or
uniqueness of habitat, including
relict ecosystems.
Important Plant Areas (IPAs)
are natural or semi-natural
sites exhibiting exceptional
botanical richness and/or
supporting an outstanding
assemblage of rare, threatened
and/or endemic plant species
and/or vegetation of high
botanical value (Plantlife
International).
IPA sites are selected scientifically
using the most up-to-date
data available, supported
by expert scientific judgement;
unlike many site assessment
processes, IPA selection
criteria encompass all of
the plant and fungal kingdoms
(vascular plants, bryophytes,
water fresh algae, lichens
and fungi). Programs that
focus on site-based conservation
of plants such as the Important
Plant Area (IPA) are a means
of generating sound data
to ensure that the best
sites for plant diversity
in different ecological
regions are included in
effective national and regional
protected area networks.
IPA data will be targeted
at ongoing initiatives such
as Natura 2000, High Nature
Value Farmland, the Emerald
network and the Pan-European
Ecological Network of the
Pan-European Biological
and Landscape Diversity
Strategy.
In this session, we present
the results of the Italian
programme for the identification
of IPAS, focusing on the
connection between IPAs
and landscape scale as a
proposal towards an effective
conservation planning at
national scale.
Key
words: plant
conservation, site selection,
national scale.
