Mapping the overlapping of oil and gas concessions and marine and coastal protected areas through GIS analysis

The oil and gas extraction in offshore context shows a leading role in the world economy. This sector is often based only on economics criteria, not considering the environmental and social costs it may implicate. In fact, uncontrolled oil spills, but also many other operations of oil and gas exploration and exploitation, can cause heavy damages to the fragile coastal and marine ecosystems, representing a concrete threat for their diversity of species. The Mediterranean Basin is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in the world and, despite its value, it is theater of oil and gas activities which can potentially bring about wide negative effects on its delicate ecological balances. If there are some studies about the effects on the marine and coastal biota caused by offshore extraction in the Mediterranean Sea, the relationship between offshore oil and gas activities and protected areas hasn’t been examined in depth yet. On this basis, the present paper provides a cartographic visualization of the overlapping between oil and gas concessions and protected areas (Natura 2000 sites; Marine Protected Areas; Regional and Provincial Parks) in the marine and coastal contexts of Italy to identify potentially critical situations for biodiversity conservation. Two typologies of oil and gas concessions were considered in the study: exploitation and exploration concessions. The research was conducted through the GIS analysis of geospatial data, considering the boundaries of the two concession categories and the protected areas. These data were available from the National Geoportal and from the Environment and Economic Development Ministries websites. Results of the GIS analysis on offshore exploitation concessions (7.683,2 km2) revealed a minimal overlapping with Natura 2000 sites and Marine Protected Areas and none with the Parks For the offshore exploration concessions (7.750,68 km2), none is located inside any category of protected areas. Focusing on the coastal exploitation concessions, from a total surface of 2.710,56 km2, 372,10 km2 is in Natura 2000 sites, 119,75 km2 falls inside the Parks, 39,49 km2 in Marine Protected Areas. Considering the coastal exploration concessions (total surface of 3.595,35 km2), 139,24 km2 is located in Natura 2000 sites, 0,38 km2 in Parks and 10,44 km2 in Marine Protected Areas. The overall overlapping analysis disclosed that the most critical area seems to be the Po Delta Interregional Park, a fundamental area for biodiversity conservation and the most complex system of wetlands in Italy, with concessions, most of them for gas, in 25.75% of the entire Park. Another sensitive area affected by oil and gas activities is the Whale Sanctuary, in which 0,98 km2 of a coastal concession is placed, representing, despite the minimal overlapping, a potential element of criticality for some internationally protected cetacean species. On the contrary, the scarce overlapping between the concessions and the protected areas in marine contexts is a positive factor for the conservation of those fragile ecosystems. In conclusion, the research reveals the usefulness of spatial analysis to highlight potentially critical situations in case of high environmental impact activities. Furthermore, spatial analysis can offer important support in planning and decision-making performance, to identify specific areas in which the extraction activity has to be avoided in order to preserve its ecological functions.