Urban agriculture and soil classification. A method for landscape characterization in metropolitan areas

The formula Urban and Peri-urban Farming (UPF) has been chosen for its ability to summarize a number of socio-technical features that detach these practices from the backdrop scenario of European agriculture, now broadly integrated in the global trends of large scale and/or mechanized agribusiness. Beside this, the growing awareness for sustainable agricultural practices is an attempt to reduce degradation of natural resources and to find environmentally compatible ways of increasing production and promoting certified bio-products. The intensification of agriculture activities, urban sprawl diffusion and land contamination levels requires a thorough knowledge of the soil as a resource and its close relationship with specific crop. Information on distribution, potential and constraints of major soils is needed, so that the most appropriate soil management systems can be designed. In addition, knowledge on land capability and suitability is also essential to determine the best land use for sustained crop production. New interpretative and methodological instruments are needed in order to further investigate various aspects of this phenomenon in a sustainability perspective.