Cities today are facing increasingly complex challenges such as air pollution, climate change and
biodiversity loss, in this context urban forestry emerges as a strategic and necessary solution.
The project “The true value of urban greenery”, promoted by the Forestry Consortium
Kilometro Verde Parma and co-financed by Cariparma Foundation, assessed the economic and
environment al impact of three urban forestry interventions in Parma, Northern Italy.
Then, Vsafe, a spin-off of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart which carried out the study,
has applied its Social Cost-Benefit Analysis (SCBA) model to the three case studies in order to
measure and communicate the value of urban greening investments.
Urban greening is the incorporation of green spaces and elements into urban environments and
infrastructures, such as roads, cities, roofs and walls. It can mitigate the health effects of
antropogenic pollution, at the same time It can provide social, educational and recreational
benefits. All those benefits are called Ecosystem Services and can be measured in economic
terms by SCBA.
On the other hand, urban greening has a cost, in terms of space, economic resources, limitations
on urban sprawl, etc. The SCBA makes it possible to consider these costs as well and compare
them to the benefits to assess the overall value of a project.
In recent years, innovative economic methodologies have made it possible to assign a monetary
value to natural goods and services, bringing out positive externalities often overlooked in
traditional valuations. This study aims to improve the management of environmental resources
and promote more informed decisions by stakeholders, from citizens to municipalities and local
authorities

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