Meteo-climatic analysis of Po river's delta, and assessment of adaptation scenarios

As climate becomes more unpredictable all around the globe and extreme events cause serious catastrophes, finding solutions to mitigate climate threats and adapt the land to face it's impacts is becoming a relevant topic more than ever. In this perspective the LAND4CLIMATE project, an EU-funded initiative under the HORIZON-EU program (2023–2027), intends to deploy and demonstrate the practical applications of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) on privately owned land. This approach accelerates NBS diffusion and reduces costs. The project targets climate adaptation and mitigation in regions facing climate-related challenges across Europe. My thesis is part of this initiative, focusing on the lower Po Delta area in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. The thesis first examines the region's recent climate trends compared to historical data. Then, using methodologies from the EU H2020 project OPERANDUM (OPEn-air Laboratories for Nature baseD solUtions to Manage hydro-meteo risks), I developed an in-depth meteo-climatic data analysis, taking into account different climate indexes, in order to get a general overview of the climate behaviour in the area of interest previously cited. The results obtained by the analysis have been used to highlight critical points in the lower Po Delta area subject to climate-related issues. The analysis highlights two primary issues: rising temperatures, especially harsh in summer, and sudden, heavy rainfall events The final part of the thesis work shows different examples of NBS that have been implemented all around the world, to face similar problems to the ones identified in the area of interest. The purpose is to suggest ideas of climate change mitigation and adaptation solutions that can be applied in the critical points spotted with the data analysis.