Papers by Mattia Trabucchi
Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 2007
The landscape dynamics (1927–2003) of one reach at the Middle Ebro River (NE Spain) was examined ... more The landscape dynamics (1927–2003) of one reach at the Middle Ebro River (NE Spain) was examined using aerial pictures and GIS techniques. Moreover, changes in the natural flow regime and anthropic activities within the river-floodplain system were investigated. Our results indicate that hydrological and landscape patterns have been dramatically changed during the last century as a consequence of human alteration of the fluvial dynamics within the studied reach, as well as the overall basin. The magnitude and variability of river discharge events have decreased, especially since 1981, and flood protection structures have disrupted the river floodplain connectivity. As a result, the succesional pathways of riparian ecotopes have been heavily modified because natural rejuvenation no longer takes place, resulting in decreased landscape diversity. It is apparent from these data that floodplain restoration must be incorporated as a significant factor into river management plans if a more...
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Remote Sensing
Vegetation Indices (VIs) represent a useful method for extracting vegetation information from sat... more Vegetation Indices (VIs) represent a useful method for extracting vegetation information from satellite images. Erosion models like the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), employ VIs as an input to determine the RUSLE soil Cover factor (C). From the standpoint of soil conservation planning, the C factor is one of the most important RUSLE parameters because it measures the combined effect of all interrelated cover and management variables. Despite its importance, the results are generally incomplete because most indices recognize healthy or green vegetation, but not senescent, dry or dead vegetation, which can also be an important contributor to C. The aim of this research is to propose a novel approach for calculating new VIs that are better correlated with C, using field and satellite information. The approach followed by this research is to state the generation of new VIs in terms of a computer optimization problem and then applying a machine learning technique, named Ge...
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Remote Sensing
Vegetation Indices (VIs) represent a useful method for extracting vegetation information from sat... more Vegetation Indices (VIs) represent a useful method for extracting vegetation information from satellite images. Erosion models like the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), employ VIs as an input to determine the RUSLE soil Cover factor (C). From the standpoint of soil conservation planning, the C factor is one of the most important RUSLE parameters because it measures the combined effect of all interrelated cover and management variables. Despite its importance, the results are generally incomplete because most indices recognize healthy or green vegetation, but not senescent, dry or dead vegetation, which can also be an important contributor to C. The aim of this research is to propose a novel approach for calculating new VIs that are better correlated with C, using field and satellite information. The approach followed by this research is to state the generation of new VIs in terms of a computer optimization problem and then applying a machine learning technique, named Ge...
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Journal of …, 2006
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Environmental Management, 2014
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Environmental management, 2014
Semi-arid Mediterranean regions are highly susceptible to desertification processes which can red... more Semi-arid Mediterranean regions are highly susceptible to desertification processes which can reduce the benefits that people obtain from healthy ecosystems and thus threaten human wellbeing. The European Union Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 recognizes the need to incorporate ecosystem services into land-use management, conservation, and restoration actions. The inclusion of ecosystem services into restoration actions and plans is an emerging area of research, and there are few documented approaches and guidelines on how to undertake such an exercise. This paper responds to this need, and we demonstrate an approach for identifying both key ecosystem services provisioning areas and the spatial relationship between ecological processes and services. A degraded semi-arid Mediterranean river basin in north east Spain was used as a case study area. We show that the quantification and mapping of services are the first step required for both optimizing and targeting of specific local areas for restoration. Additionally, we provide guidelines for restoration planning at a watershed scale; establishing priorities for improving the delivery of ecosystem services at this scale; and prioritizing the sub-watersheds for restoration based on their potential for delivering a combination of key ecosystem services for the entire basin.
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La provisión de servicios por los ecosistemas podría empeorar considerablemente y rápidamente dur... more La provisión de servicios por los ecosistemas podría empeorar considerablemente y rápidamente durante la primera mitad del presente siglo si no se restauran eficientemente ecosistemas degradados. Frente a la aproximación clásica de la restauración basada en sistemas de referencia a imitar, existe el reto de obtener metodologías para territorio amplio y complejo y no solo para un sitio con un tipo de ecosistema. Existen muchas opciones para conservar o fortalecer servicios específicos de los ecosistemas de forma que se reduzcan las elecciones negativas que nos veamos obligados a hacer o que se creen sinergias positivas con otros servicios de los ecosistemas. En esta tesis se ha desarrollado una metodología basada en la evaluación de servicios de los ecosistemas, como variables de estado, y del riesgo de erosión, como factor de disturbio, para establecer una jerarquización espacial de actuaciones de restauración a escala de cuenca hidrográfica. Para ello se ha realizado la evaluación de servicios de los ecosistemas, modelización de la erosión y se han utilizado sistemas de información geográfica (SIG) para la elaboración de cartografía jerárquica y análisis espacial. El área de estudio utilizada es la cuenca del Río Martín (Teruel, NE España, 1938 km2) como unidad funcional que, por su susceptibilidad natural a la erosión y con su elevada heterogeneidad paisajística y diferentes usos del suelo (agrícola, minería, ganadera) se presta como un valioso territorio donde aplicar y testar la metodología propuesta. La cartografía elaborada para la estimación de las tasas de erosión ha sido extrapolada con el modelo RUSLE (Ecuación de pérdida de suelo revisada) utilizando un innovador índice de vegetación (GPVI). Este índice fue elaborado mediante una técnica de inteligencia artificial llamada programación genética, la cual fue calibrada con los datos de campo del factor C de RUSLE (muestreo de suelos, transectos de vegetación) del presente estudio. Los datos de campo utilizados para crear el mapa de erosión han sido complementados con imágenes satelitales Landsat 5-TM y mapas disponibles de las características del territorio (litología, uso del suelo, ortofotos aéreas). Las tasas de erosión observadas en la cuenca del Martín tienen una media de 13.8 t ha-1 año-1 siendo notablemente mayores en la parte sur (20 t ha-1 año-1) debido a su irregular orografía que en las zonas de llanura del norte (10 t ha-1 año-1). Los servicios de los ecosistemas se evaluaron mediante indicadores obtenidos a partir de bases de datos nacionales y regionales complementados con datos de campo. Los datos son expresados para cada servicio en las unidades de medida correspondientes y se basan en el análisis de los mapas de diferentes datos físico-químicos y biológicos. Los datos de los servicios relacionados con el agua han sido proporcionados para la Confederación Hidrográfica del Ebro (CHE), los datos de acumulación de carbono en pies mayores han sido proporcionados por el Departamento de Recursos forestales del Centro de Investigación de tecnología y investigación agraria de Aragón (CITA). Los datos de acumulación de carbono en el suelo son disponibles en el Portal de Suelos Europeo (European Soil Portal). Las rutas de eco-turismo han sido descargadas de la pagina de rutas wiki-loc y la pagina de senderos de Aragón. La retención de suelo fue modelizada combinando datos del factor C para estimar el porcentual de cobertura vegetal y las tasas de erosión del modelo RUSLE-SIG. Los servicios de los ecosistemas variaron también entre amplios y diferentes rangos. La acumulación de carbono varía entre 0 y 4648 t CO2 eq en zonas menos densas de vegetación y 40442 y 118073 t CO2 eq en las zonas forestales densas; la provisión de agua superficial en el norte varía entre 0 y 13 mm y 100 y 210 en el sur de la cuenca, principalmente en fondos de valles; el control de la escorrentía (recarga acuíferos) es más alto en zonas montañosas del sur de la cuenca con valores entre 8 y 81 mm año-1 con valores mínimos entre 8 y 34 mm año-1 en el norte y máximos de 81 mm año-1 en el sur; la retención del suelo se ha expresado en valores relativos que varían de 1 a 5 dependiendo de la relación entre porcentaje de cobertura vegetal y perdida del suelo (estimada por la RUSLE-SIG en 5 clases de muy baja a muy alta), con valor máximo de retención de suelo a coberturas mayores de 70% y erosión menor de 12 t ha-1 año-1, y mínimo a zonas de cobertura inferior a 30% y erosión mayor de 17 t ha-1 año-1. El servicio de eco-turismo se ha evaluado como presencia-ausencia, asignando valor 1 a las áreas de la cuenca que se observan desde los senderos usando la herramienta de visualización de cuenca en SIG (viewshed) y 0 en el resto de la cuenca que no se observa desde los senderos según el modelo digital del terreno utilizado. Tratándose de datos con unidades diferentes, entre ellos se utilizó una agrupación en el rango relativo de 1 a 5 de cada servicio por cortes naturales (Natural Breaks) en SIG, que genera clases cuyos límites se ubican donde hay diferencias relativamente grandes en los valores de los datos por cada servicio. Ecoturismo tenía un valor 0 o 1 según la ausencia o posibilidad de visualización del paisaje en el recorrer los caminos. El valor más elevado de un determinado servicio se considera un área de elevado valor definido como hotspot, que es un área de una importancia máxima para ese servicio. Análisis de solapamiento han sido realizados para entender las relaciones entre servicios. Finalmente a través de la creación de mapas jerárquicos los datos de erosión y servicios ecosistémicos han sido relacionados analizando la congruencia espacial y los patrones espaciales a diferentes escalas anidadas entre ellas, dándonos la posibilidad de analizar el comportamiento de los dos factores, y contrastar el factor de disturbio y las variables de estado a diferentes escalas espaciales. Se ha identificado la zona sur de la cuenca del área de estudio, como el área donde se presentan más servicios y se observan las tasas de erosión más altas debido a factores topográficos, entre otros. En ésta zona, y particularmente en las subcuencas con zonas mineras no restauradas (donde la erosión muestra tasas máximas y los servicios son muchas veces nulos y en subcuencas con altas tasas de erosión y alto número de servicios las acciones de restauración han de ser prioritarias si no se quieren perder servicios que benefician aguas abajo en la cuenca. Claramente según los objetivos del gestor las prioridades pueden modificarse y nuestra metodología fácilmente adaptarse. En la zona norte, llana y mayoritariamente usada para agricultura de cereal de secano, la erosión es relativamente baja y la provisión de servicios de regulación también. Es la zona de menor interés para realizar acciones de restauración dado que la mejora de los servicios no está asegurada y se podría entrar en conflicto con intereses de usos (trade off) de otros servicios (por ej., producción de alimentos) incluidos sociales. También se ha demostrado la utilidad de realizar evaluaciones a diferentes resoluciones espaciales para la mejor identificación de las zonas óptimas de restauración. Se propone un modelo conceptual general de toma de decisiones de restauración a escala de cuenca en función de la provisión de servicios de los ecosistemas y de los factores de alteración ecológica. Finalmente la metodología aquí propuesta, desarrollada con SIG con la creación de mapas jerárquicos, ha resultado fácilmente adaptable a la escala de paisaje. Esto hace que nuestro modelo dependiendo de la disponibilidad de datos, sea una herramienta útil y fácilmente aplicable para la restauración a escala de cuenca hidrográfica o de paisaje, donde los servicios ecosistémicos estén alterados por diferentes factores de disturbio.
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Page 1. Eco-hidrología de terrenos restaurados. La escala de cuenca Pérez-Domingo, S , Comín, F ,... more Page 1. Eco-hidrología de terrenos restaurados. La escala de cuenca Pérez-Domingo, S , Comín, F , De Miguel, L , Trabucchi, M y Nicolau, JM Page 2. INTRODUCCIÓN La minería es una actividad necesaria PERO de gran impacto ambiental Restauraciones con topografías abruptas ELEVADAS PROBABILIDADES DE FRACASO Altas tasas de erosión hídrica (Nicolau, 2003) Impactos al medio Impactos en el medio Page 3.
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The floodplain of the middle Ebro River (NE Spain) was submitted to intense degradation for the l... more The floodplain of the middle Ebro River (NE Spain) was submitted to intense degradation for the last decades because of: decreased river discharge, regular groundwater discharge from irrigated land, extensive agricultural use.
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Abstract: Long experience and commitment have been applied for the reclamation of surface coal mi... more Abstract: Long experience and commitment have been applied for the reclamation of surface coal mine zones. However, in many cases, practical results are quite poor and a lot of the “reclaimed lands” would need a new reclamation project. Application of an insufficient conceptual framework explains the failure of mining reclamation in practice. An advanced reclamation concept based on the hydroecological basin as the restoration unit is being developed in Teruel coalfield (NE Spain).
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The changes of landscape (1927–2003), discharge regime and anthropic activities with the river-fl... more The changes of landscape (1927–2003), discharge regime and anthropic activities with the river-floodplain of one reach at the Middle Ebro River (NE Spain) were investigated with the objective to identify the factors that best explain the natural ecotope succession and propose a realistic restoration option with consideration of the landscape dynamics during the last century and the socio-economic context.
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Regional Environmental Change
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River basin restoration and management is crucial for assuring the continued delivery of ecosyste... more River basin restoration and management is crucial for assuring the continued delivery of ecosystem services and for limiting potential hazards. Human activity, whether directly or indirectly, can induce erosion processes and drastically change the landscape and alter vital ecological functions. Mapping erosion risk before future restoration-management projects will help to reveal the priority areas and develop a hierarchy ordered according to need. For this purpose, we used the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) erosion model. We also applied a novel technique called GPVI (Genetic Programming Vegetation Index) in the Martín River basin in NE Spain (2,112 km2), which has a large coalfield located in the southern part of the basin. Approximately two-thirds (69%) of the area of the Martín basin presents low and medium soil loss rates, and one-third (31%) of the area presents high (18%), very high (10%), and irreversible (3%) erosion rates. The southern part of the basin is the most degraded and is strongly influenced by the topography. This work allows us to locate areas prone to erosional degradation processes to help create a buffer around the river and locate “spots” in need of restoration. We also checked the error estimation of the methodology because our soil maps do not include rock and bare rock areas. The usefulness of applying RUSLE for predicting degraded areas and the consequent directing of soil conservation–restoration actions at the basin scale is demonstrated. We highly recommend a field survey of the selected areas to prove the goodness of the model estimations.
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"The integration of ecosystem services in ecological restoration projects presents an
opportunit... more "The integration of ecosystem services in ecological restoration projects presents an
opportunity for enhancing benefits to human livelihood and funding sources as well as
generating public support for such initiatives. This study reviewed the global trends in
integrating ecosystem services in basin-scale restoration projects through bibliographic
analysis. Few studies appear to incorporate ecosystem services, possibly due to the
inconsistency and absence of the use of universally accepted classifications. Our
review notes an increasing trend from 2006 onward towards the inclusion and citation
of this concept, although its use is still limited. In this review, the supporting service
was found to be the most cited (8), followed by regulatory (3), cultural (1) and
provisioning (1) services. Identifying the number of services related to a restoration
action was problematic when the services were not explicitly cited. We identify
opportunities for increased integration of ecosystem services in basin-scale restoration
projects, suggesting a conceptual framework following from new hierarchical maps.
This is based on congruence between degrading processes or threat maps (e.g.,
thresholds of impacts) and ecosystem service maps. The resultant map will facilitate
the targeting of threatened service supply at different scales from the basin scale to the
scale of the restoration site. We urge the scientific community to standardize definitions
and create methodologies and software tools that facilitate the incorporation of
ecosystem services in large-scale restoration plans."
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Papers by Mattia Trabucchi
opportunity for enhancing benefits to human livelihood and funding sources as well as
generating public support for such initiatives. This study reviewed the global trends in
integrating ecosystem services in basin-scale restoration projects through bibliographic
analysis. Few studies appear to incorporate ecosystem services, possibly due to the
inconsistency and absence of the use of universally accepted classifications. Our
review notes an increasing trend from 2006 onward towards the inclusion and citation
of this concept, although its use is still limited. In this review, the supporting service
was found to be the most cited (8), followed by regulatory (3), cultural (1) and
provisioning (1) services. Identifying the number of services related to a restoration
action was problematic when the services were not explicitly cited. We identify
opportunities for increased integration of ecosystem services in basin-scale restoration
projects, suggesting a conceptual framework following from new hierarchical maps.
This is based on congruence between degrading processes or threat maps (e.g.,
thresholds of impacts) and ecosystem service maps. The resultant map will facilitate
the targeting of threatened service supply at different scales from the basin scale to the
scale of the restoration site. We urge the scientific community to standardize definitions
and create methodologies and software tools that facilitate the incorporation of
ecosystem services in large-scale restoration plans."
opportunity for enhancing benefits to human livelihood and funding sources as well as
generating public support for such initiatives. This study reviewed the global trends in
integrating ecosystem services in basin-scale restoration projects through bibliographic
analysis. Few studies appear to incorporate ecosystem services, possibly due to the
inconsistency and absence of the use of universally accepted classifications. Our
review notes an increasing trend from 2006 onward towards the inclusion and citation
of this concept, although its use is still limited. In this review, the supporting service
was found to be the most cited (8), followed by regulatory (3), cultural (1) and
provisioning (1) services. Identifying the number of services related to a restoration
action was problematic when the services were not explicitly cited. We identify
opportunities for increased integration of ecosystem services in basin-scale restoration
projects, suggesting a conceptual framework following from new hierarchical maps.
This is based on congruence between degrading processes or threat maps (e.g.,
thresholds of impacts) and ecosystem service maps. The resultant map will facilitate
the targeting of threatened service supply at different scales from the basin scale to the
scale of the restoration site. We urge the scientific community to standardize definitions
and create methodologies and software tools that facilitate the incorporation of
ecosystem services in large-scale restoration plans."