The Atlas of Terraced Landscapes of Trentino, Italy

In recent years, the Autonomous Province of Trento (Trentino, Italy) has carried out a series of studies and projects centred on the relationships between landscape and agricultural activities. In 2014, the Landscape Observatory Forum approved the programme “Ten actions for the rural landscapes of Trentino” in which the terraced agricultural areas which characterise many valleys of this Alpine province received special attention. The programme soon took the form of an Atlas of terraced landscapes. An operational methodology for the identification of terraced areas, often hidden by recent forest expansion, was developed. It is a predictive model based on LiDAR data, which allowed the identification and characterisation of rural terraced landscapes, and which was followed by an on-site inspection that produced more than 7000 geo-referenced pictures. The Atlas comprises 16 volumes with several thematic maps covering all of the provincial territory that has been terraced. The research identified around 10,500 ha of terraced areas is 1.7% of the total provincial surface. Some 5800 ha are still in use, while the rest are abandoned and covered by forests. The retaining structures of the terraces are composed mainly of walls and slopes and extend for some 4500 km.