Digital Commons Network^™

Urban Watershed Services For Improved Ecosystem Management And Risk Reduction, Assessment Methods And Policy Instruments: State Of The Art, Yaella Depietri, Lorenzo Guadagno, Margaretha Breil

Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Working Papers

Under scenarios of increasing unplanned urban expansion, environmental degradation and hazard exposure, the vulnerability of urban populations, especially of their poorer segments, needs to be tackled through integrated economic, social and environmental solutions. Basing our analysis on the concept of ecosystem services, we suggest that urban areas would benefit from a shift in perspective towards a more regional approach, which recognizes them as one of many interconnected elements that interact at the watershed level. By integrating an ecosystem approach into the management of water-related services, urban management policies can take a first step towards fostering an improvement of the health …