Abstract:
Land suitability assessment is an efficient method used to give indication about a sustainable
land use planning. A decision support system based on multi-criteria analysis was used to
evaluate land suitability for hop cultivation in four regions of Central and Southern Italy
(Abruzzo, Basilicata, Latium and Molise). Seven environmental parameters (altitude, average
minimum temperature between November and February, average maximum summer
temperature, spring rainfall, summer rainfall, organic carbon content, and environmental
sensitive area index) were considered to generate the suitability index. The analysis revealed that
Abruzzo and Latium are more suitable for hop cultivation than Basilicata and Molise: only 7%
municipalities for Latium and 11 % for Abruzzo were unsuitable for this cultivation. On the
other hand, more than 50 % of Basilicata and 33 % of Molise resulted not suitable. Results
provided an effective tool to evaluate physical land suitability and, consequently, to choose the
adoption of a proper management and farming systems, which could allow the hop cultivation
even in not potentially suitable areas. |
