Natural parks and biodiversity
One of Lombardy's protected natural areas is part of the Stelvio National Park. Located in the Alps, the park is dedicated to preserving mountain ecosystems and their rich biodiversity (chamois, ibex, capercaillie, etc.).
The region is also home to a number of magnificent parks and gardens, which are both refuges for biodiversity and havens of peace for visitors in search of tranquillity and nature. These include the Parco Sempione in Milan, which covers almost 47 hectares, and the magnificent "Lorenzo Rota" botanical garden in Bergamo, a place of history and ecological awareness.
A territory exposed to heavy pollution
One of the region's major environmental black spots is undoubtedly its poor air quality. Milan, Bergamo and Brescia are among the European cities with the highest levels of fine particles. This is due to road traffic, industry and intensive farming and livestock breeding in the Po plain (fertilizer spreading, liquid manure). It's also important to note that rice-growing in the region emits methane and nitrous oxide, which are also powerful greenhouse gases. Agricultural effluents also eutrophy rivers.
On the road to sustainable mobility
A study published in The Lancet Planetary Health in 2021 highlighted Bergamo and Brescia as having the highest mortality rates in Europe due to exposure to fine particles and nitrogen dioxide (these are particles emitted mainly by diesel vehicles). Faced with this situation, some cities have taken steps to limit car traffic and develop soft mobility (tramway, metro, bus, bicycles). Bergamo's city center can only be reached on foot, by bike or by bus. The city also has a 100% electric bus line. Milan, meanwhile, has introduced a congestion charge(Area C), exempting only the least polluting vehicles (electric and hybrid) from payment. A zone(Area B) closed to the most emissive vehicles is currently being rolled out, as is an ambitious bicycle plan. The city has also deployed self-service bicycle rental systems (including VAE), electric scooters and electric vehicles (for more information: www.comune.milano.it/aree-tematiche/mobilita/). As far as travel is concerned, Lombardy is easily accessible by train (direct connection from Paris, although at the time of updating this guide this has been interrupted due to a landslide: shuttle buses have been set up between Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne and Oulx), and the area is dotted with beautiful cyclo-touristic itineraries (see: www.in-lombardia.it/fr/que-faire-en-lombardie/navigli/bici-sui-navigli).
Milan: towards resilience
The city of Sforza is a model in Italy and beyond for some of the environmental initiatives it has implemented. Efficient waste management has enabled it to catch up with European targets. Under the leadership of its mayor, Giuseppe Sala, the city has also embarked on a vast tree-planting and "green urbanism" operation, aimed at creating ecological corridors, i.e. continuums (rivers and land areas) that enable the evolutionary dynamics of living organisms to be maintained. To this end, the municipality has launched a project to redevelop former rail freight tracks into 7 parks forming an ecological network. This "urban regeneration" has already taken the form of two tree-lined urban parks. In addition to maintaining biodiversity, such a project helps to contain rising temperatures and combat pollution, via the particle filtering role of the plant cover. The municipality, via a European project called " clever cities ", also aims to green 10 million square meters of roofs and plant 3 million trees, starting with schools but also the areas most exposed to heat (see: clevercities.eu/milan/). A tax incentive scheme is also intended to encourage residents to plant trees (they can pay certain taxes by purchasing seedlings). Measures have also been taken to improve the energy efficiency of heating systems. An emblematic architectural work in Milan is the "vertical forest"(bosco verticale) on two residential towers built by Stefano Boeri in the Porta Nuova district. Finally, there's the "intelligent district" project in Porta Romana, on a former industrial wasteland. Milan has also embarked on a cycling plan, which aims to create 750 km of cycling facilities by 2035. The plan is based on a study of residents' movements, and hence their needs, and will enable the creation of seamless, long-distance cycle routes from outlying areas. The aim is to achieve a 20% modal share for cycling. The plan also relies on the introduction of services (such as automatic lighting).
Promote local and quality food
Milan is committed to promoting fair, healthy and resilient food, as well as reducing food waste. This led to the signing of the Urban Food Policy Pact in 2015. Bergamo, a member of the Unesco network of creative cities of gastronomy, is developing participative actions in favor of local, quality cheese-based agriculture. The Slowfood movement, recognized by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and born in Italy, aims to promote "healthy, clean and fair" food, to defend food biodiversity, and a whole philosophy linked to the pleasure of food. Among other actions, the movement develops taste education and ecotourism programs around food, supports small-scale producers, and lists food products threatened with extinction (see: slowfood.it). The Agriturismo network brings together organic farms that welcome visitors (for more information: www.agriturismo.it/fr).
