Silvia Properzi, Susanna D'Antoni, Stefania Ercole
In Italy, a total of 843 terrestrial protected areas (including those with a coastal component) have been established to date, covering more than 3 million hectares, equivalent to about 10.5% of the country’s land surface. An analysis of the historical series (1922–2024) shows consistently positive trends—particularly from the mid-1970s—in both the number and the extent of terrestrial protected areas, while growth trends have tended to stabilize since 2008–2009.
This is a response indicator that considers the terrestrial extent of protected areas established across Italy. For each region, the protected surface was calculated and broken down according to the categories defined in the sixth update of the Official List of Protected Areas (EUAP, 2010), alongside the percentage relative to the regional area and to the national protected area total. The indicator includes EUAP data (latest update in 2010), supplemented with information on the new terrestrial protected areas established at national level in 2010 (Tresero–Dosso del Vallon State Nature Reserve), in 2016 (Pantelleria Island National Park), and in 2023 with the designation of Portofino National Park—which, however, replaces a pre-existing Regional Park and therefore does not meaningfully change the number or the total protected surface—and with the expansion of Val Grande National Park.
Assess the current level and temporal trend of the protection of terrestrial environments present on the national territory, through data on protected surfaces established through national or subnational laws and provisions.
L 394/91 (Framework Law on Protected Areas)
EUAP, 6th update (DM 27.04.2010 GU n. 125 of 31.05.2010)
DM 02/12/2010 (Establishment of the State Nature Reserve called “Tresero-Dosso del Vallon”)
Presidential Decree 07/28/2016 (Establishment of the “Island of Pantelleria” National Park and the “Island of Pantelleria” National Park Authority)
Terrestrial protected areas, defined by the Framework Law on Protected Areas (L. 394/91 and subsequent amendments), are established with the aim of guaranteeing and promoting the conservation and enhancement of the natural heritage on the national territory. With the establishment of protected areas, subject to different protection regimes depending on the categories they belong to, the legislator intended to promote the application of environmental management and restoration methods suitable for guaranteeing the integration between man and the natural environment, to reduce the loss of biodiversity.
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The indicator provides only quantitative information; it does not assess implementation status, the effectiveness of protection, or the environmental conditions of the protected areas.
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MASE (Ministry of the Environment and Energy Safety)
Consultation of the Official List of Protected Areas (EUAP) published in the Official Journal; consultation of the Common Database on Designated Areas (CDDA), now merged into the Nationally Designated Areas (NatDA ) published on the website of the European Environment Agency , ( https://www. eea. europa. eu/data-and-maps/data/nationally-designated-areas-national-cdda-17)
National, Regional (20/20)
1922-2024
Data were organized in tables and graphically processed using Excel.
The status is positive because terrestrial protected areas in Italy exceed 3 million hectares, corresponding to about 10.5% of the national land surface, in line with targets defined under the CBD (Rio Convention, 1992).
The trend can be considered positive when examining the historical series, which shows consistently increasing numbers and surface areas of protected natural sites beginning in the mid-1970s. Over the last decade, however, growth has noticeably stabilized. Compared with the latest EUAP update (2010), a slight increase of 0.03% has occurred in the protected terrestrial surface, due to the establishment of a new National Park and a new State Nature Reserve.
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Table 1: Land area of protected areas by region and type (updated 2024) Data source
MASE Note
The source data in the table are rounded to the nearest hectare. |
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Table 2: Percentage distribution of terrestrial protected areas by region and type (2024) Data source
ISPRA analysis based on data from the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security |
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Figure 1: Land area of protected areas by region/autonomous province and percentage of regional territory protected (2024) Data source
ISPRA analysis based on data from the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security: EUAP, 6th update (2010) and subsequent national or subnational laws and measures establishing protected areas. |
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Figure 2: Percentage distribution of types of terrestrial protected areas by region/autonomous province (2024) Data source
ISPRA analysis based on data from the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security: EUAP, 6th update (2010) and subsequent national or subnational laws and measures establishing protected areas. |
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Figure 3: Annual change in the cumulative surface area of terrestrial protected areas by type Data source
ISPRA analysis based on data from the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security: EUAP, 6th update (2010) and subsequent national or subnational laws and measures establishing protected areas. |
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Figure 4: Annual change in the cumulative area and cumulative number of terrestrial protected areas Data source
ISPRA analysis based on data from the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security: EUAP, 6th update (2010) and subsequent national or subnational laws and measures establishing protected areas. Note
Come anno di istituzione è stato considerato quello della normativa in cui l'area protetta viene citata per la prima volta. Il PN della Calabria è stato ricompreso in quello della Sila nel 2002, pertanto a partire da tale data la sua superficie è stata sottratta dal totale dei PN. Delle seguenti aree protette è stata considerata solo la superficie a terra: PN Arcipelago Toscano, PN Arcipelago La Maddalena, RNR Valle Cavanata, RNR Foce Isonzo, RNR Falesie di Duino. |
The indicator presents the situation as updated to 2024, based on EUAP 2010 data and on information regarding terrestrial protected areas established subsequently at national level: the Tresero–Dosso del Vallo State Nature Reserve in 2010, Pantelleria Island National Park in 2016, Portofino National Park in 2023, and the 2023 expansion of Val Grande National Park.
Italy currently has (Figure 4) 843 Terrestrial Protected Areas and Terrestrial Areas with a marine component (marine protected areas are covered by a separate indicator), comprising: 26 National Parks, 148 State Nature Reserves, 133 Regional Nature Parks, 365 Regional Nature Reserves, and 171 other Protected Areas with various classifications and designations.
The terrestrial protected surface exceeds 3 million hectares (specifically 3,175,554 hectares), corresponding to 10.5% of the national land area. It consists largely of National Parks (46.5%) and Regional Nature Parks (40.7%) (Table 2). The regions contributing the most to the national protected area total are Campania (350,204 hectares), protecting 25.6% of its territory and 11% of the national total, and Abruzzo (305,051 hectares), protecting 28.2% of its territory and 9.6% of the national total (Tables 1 and 2) (Figure 1).
At the regional scale, National Parks and Regional Nature Parks generally represent the most widespread categories (Figure 2), although in some cases other categories account for a significant share of protected land. State Nature Reserves constitute 20.9% of the protected surface in Veneto; Regional Nature Reserves represent 30.7%, 23.1% and 20.1% of the protected area in Sicily, Tuscany and Lazio respectively; and “Other Regional Protected Areas” make up 30.2% of the protected surface in Molise—which nonetheless has, to date, the lowest values for both protected area surface and proportion of regional territory under protection (1.7%) according to Framework Law 394/91 and subsequent amendments, compared with other regions (Table 2 and Figure 1).
The number of protected areas has shown a consistently positive trend since the mid-1970s (Figure 4), reaching 840 protected natural areas in 2008, after which it stabilized following the establishment of three additional areas.
In terms of surface, the most marked positive trend began in the mid-1980s, exceeding 3 million hectares in 2004, while a stabilization has been observed since 2008–2009 (Figure 4). In 2023, following the expansion of Val Grande National Park, the surface of terrestrial protected areas increased by 2,253 hectares. The analysis of annual variation in cumulative area by protected-area category (Figure 3) shows that Regional Nature Parks, beginning in the mid-1970s with the start of regional institutional activity, and National Parks, especially from the 1990s onward—bolstered by the impetus provided by Framework Law 394/91—are the main contributors to the overall trend.