Landscapes of drought. Future scenarios between agriculture and land aptitudes

Abstract

The impact of climate change on agriculture and the future rural landscape is strictly related to the need to improve resilience to water stress. In this context, the main problems are the increase in droughts and the intensification of rainfall events. The objective of the research project, car-ried out in the territory of the Reclamation Consortium of Ferrara, is to manage them through a consistent selection of less productive agricultural areas and their transformation into new habitats capable of storing water and releasing it during drought periods. To identify the project are-as, a method was developed based on the analysis of soil productivity through the processing of satellite images. The proposed system, capable of meeting up to 38-80% of water needs by 2040, is both a tool to support current adaptation policies and a long-term vision towards new spatial configurations of the rural landscape.