Mapping

Abstract

The first scale of analysis sets to outline a comprehensive and actual overview of Alpine brownfields. To this purpose, a territorial census of existing and potentially future sites is developed, integrated by a qualitative stakeholder survey addressed to national, regional and local planning institutions in brownfield-affected contexts. The emerging brownfield geography provides a first ever transnational and concrete insight on the territorial incidence of industrial decline in the Alpine macro-region, while also suggesting how to interpret the challenge of redevelopment across the different regional contexts and local situations.

How many brownfield sites are actually existing in the Alpine region? Where precisely are these located? To which previous industries they belong to? How the challenges connected to their redevelopment are perceived and addresses by spatial and landscape planning institutions, at the local and regional level? Is it possible to assign a certain relevance to brownfield redevelopment according to specific regional contexts? To answer these questions, the first scale of analysis sets to outline a comprehensive and actual overview of Alpine brownfields. To this purpose, a quantitative territorial census of current and potentially future sites was first developed and then integrated by a qualitative stakeholder survey, addressed to national, regional and local planning institutions in brownfield-affected contexts. So conceived, the emerging geography of Alpine brownfields provides first-ever transnational, concrete insights on the territorial incidence of industrial decline in a mountain context, while also suggesting how to ‘translate’ the redevelopment challenge in the different regional contexts.

1 Framework

Focus

To date, a reliable and comprehensive quantification of former industrial sites in the Alpine region is not existing yet. The only available territorial surveys and databases—MTES/F 1998¹, Umweltbundesamt/A 2004/2008², USI/CH 2007³, Regione Lombardia/I 2008–2010⁴, ARE/CH 2008⁵, Kanton Glarus/CH 2013⁶—have a limited time and geographic coverage, besides being too heterogeneous in terms of classification criteria and thematic focuses (e.g. from contaminated sites to vacant buildings). Although these inventories represent a good starting point for reflection, they are hardly comparable and thus not useful for implementing an Alpine-wide survey. In addition, since most of the existing databases have been compiled before 2010, the impact of the 2008–2009 economic crisis in terms of site closures and/or decommissioning is inevitably ignored. To overcome this lack of a proper analytical data base, a two-step mapping procedure has been therefore developed by integrating a first quantitative census of sites (on territorial basis) with a qualitative survey among key regional stakeholders. The whole procedure has been designed and oriented according to the research framework, and especially taking in consideration the issues discussed in Chapter 3 (“the Alps as context”). In this regard, the mapping procedure focuses only and exclusively on complex sites in traditional heavy and manufacturing mountain industries. As evidenced in Chapter 3, these are not only the sectors most affected by the current structural changes, but also, they provide the brownfields whose redevelopment and transformation are the most challenging, yet strategic, for the Alpine context. This sector/typology-oriented approach follows a clear ‘anticipatory’ logic, as it allows to map not only the existing brownfield sites, but also potentially future ones, i.e. sites with similar features and subject to similar trends, yet not completely closed or dismantled. This point is particularly relevant, as long as the replicability and transferability of the research outcomes are concerned. At the same time, rather ‘irrelevant’ sites in traditional sectors as well as rather ‘young’ sites in newer sectors (i.e. established after 1960–1970) are excluded from the mapping target. This is motivated by the fact that most of these sites are lacking the complexity which makes their transformation challenging and heavily impacting on the context, being also subject to different decline/recycling dynamics compared to traditional heavy and manufacturing industrial sites. Small-sized sites, often relatable with mountain pre-industrialisation (e.g. textile mills in Glarus, Vorarlberg and Biella or mining facilities in South Tyrol and Carinthia), are indeed profiting a lot from a stronger heritage-led perception and a higher economic feasibility of transformation (Fäh 2013; Natoli and Ramello 2017). On the other hand, brownfield sites generated from the decline and abandonment of recently established industries in light manufacturing sectors have often a very specific spatial and landscape impact—connected to the clustering condition in which these industries have developed –, which largely differs from that of traditional heavy industries and usually calls for public-driven recycling strategies based on financial compensation tools (Lanzani, Merlini, and Zanfi 2013).

Criteria

To facilitate the identification of industrial sites corresponding to the mapping target—complex sites in traditional heavy and manufacturing mountain industries—a set of essential criteria was established in advance as ‘guidance’. These criteria can be synthesised as following:

• territorial coverage: the area within the perimeter of the Alpine Convention, which corresponds roughly to the orographic boundaries of the Alpine range. In some cases, also part of the Alpine forelands has been included, especially where the origin of targeted industrial sites is strongly related to the mountain resources (e.g. Bavarian plateau south of Munich, Lombardian foothills between Varese and Bergamo, Traunviertel south of Linz, etc.);

• industrial sectors: heavy and manufacturing industry belonging to the first two cycles of Alpine industrialisation, i.e. originated roughly between 1850 and 1960. In particular, the following industrial sectors have been identified as key sub-categories: ferrous metallurgy (primary and secondary iron and steel -making), nonferrous metallurgy (aluminium, zinc, lead, copper and other metals smelting, including alloys), chemical industry (partially including petrochemical and pharmaceutical industry), building material industry (manufacturing of cement, lime and refractories), textile industry (primary processing only, no clothing/apparel), paper industry (including large-scale timber industry);

• site size: an area equal to or greater than 5 hectares. This threshold is motivated by the fact that, especially in the Alpine context, the gap between small and micro sites and medium-to-large sites is quite significant. To increase productivity and efficiency as compensation for the peripheral location, traditional heavy and manufacturing industries tend, in mountain areas, to pursue a high concentration of activities on one single site. This is why sites above 5 hectares can be considered at all the effects large and complex sites, i.e. sites with a relevant spatial, environmental and socioeconomic impact in terms of decline and transformation and thus with a greater influence on regional development;

• site current status: either active or closed/downsized sites which fulfil all the previous criteria. The grouping of fully closed (no more active) and partially closed (downsized) sites in a single category is motivated by the fact that brownfields are generated in both cases—although in partially closed sites these are usually limited by size and interwoven with active/used spaces. As explained before, active sites with the same characteristics are also included, to allow a complete overview of actual as well as potentially future brownfield sites.

Methods

Guided by these criteria, the interwoven search, identification and classification of sites has been conducted by means of integrating secondary data with a virtual land survey performed on Google Earth—and other land visualisation systems, where necessary. The secondary data as input were collected from different sources, mainly existing literature on Alpine industry (cf. Chapter 3), sectoral studies at the national and regional level, secondary sector statistics and even company profiles/websites. Based on the available information, the actual presence of industrial sites and the corresponding characteristics was then verified—one by one—by patiently surfing through most recent aerial or satellite images. As said, Google Earth was chosen as the preferred platform to perform this virtual land survey, due to the highly updated content in terms of images and because it offers very useful tools, such as the temporal comparison between images (to detect downsized sites), the option to add coloured placemarks for easy and immediate classification and the area measuring tools. At the end of this long and complex procedure, a georeferenced database became available, including the exact location, typology, name, size, status and municipality of each site. This is the first, ever made attempt at the scale of the entire Alpine region.

2 Sites Census

The first stage of the mapping process consisted in the territorial census of large and complex industrial sites in the Alpine region. Based on the aforementioned focus, criteria and method, the census was completed in the course of 2017, and reviewed/updated twice in the beginning of 2018 and mid 2019. The results are here presented and commented with reference to the industrial sectors investigated and the sites distribution among Alpine countries and regions.

In total, 302 industrial sites have been identified, of which 159 are completely closed or downsized—for an overview, see the attached map Territorial census of large and complex industrial sites (Fig. 5.1), while details are contained in the Annex 1 Territorial census, list of sites. In terms of sector relative share, building material industry holds the top with 70 (38) sites, followed by ferrous metallurgy with 64 (32) sites, paper and pulp industry with 49 (13), chemical industry with 46 (25), nonferrous metallurgy with 37 (22) and textile industry with 36 (29). With less than 25% of the sites already closed or downsized, paper and pulp industry is the most ‘resilient’ traditional industrial activity in the Alps. This might be related to the fact that paper industry, although subject to process innovation, is basically depending on natural resources such as water and timber, largely available in mountain areas and thus able to compensate the scarce accessibility of many facilities. The connection to timber industry seems to be particularly relevant, as most of the active paper and pulp factories are located in the Eastern Alps, where the abundance of extensive forests at lower altitudes largely sustains this sector. In opposition to paper industry stands the ‘twin’ textile industry, the fastest declining Alpine sector with almost 80% of the sites closed or downsized. This number, which is already impressive by itself, can easily increase if all the existing, closed down micro-mills (sites covering an area far below 5 hectares) are included. While in the case of many other industrial sectors the size threshold of 5 hectares largely includes most of the sites, in the case of textile industry it tends to exclude, in fact, a lot of small and small-medium sites—which have, however, a very limited impact in terms of redevelopment and transformation. Alpine former textile regions such as those of Glarus, Biella, the western Vorarlberg and Upper Tyrol, are actually characterized by a high density of micro sites, which are ignored by the present census according the already mentioned criteria. The other analysed sectors—ferrous and nonferrous metallurgy, chemical industry and building material industry—show a rather balanced situation, with a relative rate of closed/downsized sites around 50–60%. The internal composition of these numbers differs however from sector to sector. In the case of building material industry, the amount of fully closed sites largely exceeds that of downsized sites, especially concerning cement production. This can be related to the fact that the process-based functionality of cement-making facilities does not allow partial dismantling, otherwise the overall economic sustainability of the production cycle is over. Chemical industry and ferrous/nonferrous metallurgy are heavy Alpine industries characterized by extensive facilities and a rather high adaptability/resilience in terms of production cycles and footprint. In these sectors, the relative share of fully and partially closed sites is in fact almost equal. While the complete closure of one site often depends on site-specific conditions, ranging from the ownership to the location, downsizing is mostly connected to sectoral restructuring (e.g. previous steel-making sites ‘shrunk’ to manufacturing of semi-finished products). The average size of sites is also a good indicator of the different impact that closed and downsized sites might have at the territorial level. The largest sites are found not by chance in chemical industry (32,6 hectares on average) and ferrous metallurgy (23,5). Intermediate sites are those of paper industry (18,6), building material industry (16,8) and nonferrous metallurgy (14,5), while the smallest sites are indeed within textile industry (9,1).

In terms of spatial distribution, it should be distinguished between purely geographic and national/country levels. Concerning the first, it is noticeable how the majority of complex industrial sites in traditional sectors are located along the edges of the Alps, in the transition zone between the inner rural (and sometimes touristic) highlands and the urbanised forelands. In particular, the highest concentration of sites is found in proximity to peri-Alpine cities and metropolitan regions (e.g. Milan, Lyon, Vienna, Munich, etc.), clearly indicating the historical dependency of mountain industries from peri-Alpine economic centres. In general, three main distribution patterns can be identified:

• dense agglomerations on the Alpine fringe, such as in the Savoie Prealps, along the southern foothills between Turin and Brescia, on the south-east of Munich and between Graz and Vienna;

• linear sequences along major inner valleys (and transit corridors), such as the Rhone valley in Valais, the Ossola valley in Piedmont, the Aosta valley, the Maurienne in Savoie, the lower Inn valley and the Mur-Mürz valley in Styria;

• widespread networks in both outer and inner regions, such as Provence, central-eastern Switzerland towards Vorarlberg and Allgäu, Salzkammergut-Traunviertel and in the south-eastern Alps from Trentino to Carinthia through Veneto, Friuli and Slovenia.

• In addition, a significant presence of heavy industrial sites (chemical industry and metallurgy) can be also noticed in inner mountainous regions of the Western Alps (Savoie, Valais, Piedmont), clearly indicating the much stronger role played here, in comparison to the Eastern Alps, by hydroelectric energy in fostering this kind of industrial development.

At country level, the distribution of large and complex sites (with closed/downsized sites in brackets) is rather unequal, although it follows to some extent the national shares of Alpine territory: Italy counts 133 (73) sites, followed by Austria with 74 (31) sites, France with 43 (28) sites, Switzerland with 23 (13) sites, Germany with 15 (5) sites and Slovenia with 14 (9) sites. The relative share of closed/downsized sites on the country’s total shows Italy and Switzerland in equilibrium (slightly above 50%), Slovenia and France with a prevalence of closed sites (around 65%), Austria slightly below the equilibrium (42%) and Germany positively performing (33%). In the case of Italy, the majority of declining sites are distributed across all the sectors, with significant shares in earlier established ones such as textile industry (Biella, Bergamo and Vicenza old textile regions) and cement industry (once widely diffused in the prealpine areas). Former electro-chemical and electro-metallurgical industries once connected to hydropower are also declining, especially in the central-western Italian Alps. In Austria, most of the closed/downsized sites are found also in building material industry (cement industry in Tyrol and refractories in Styria) and especially in ferrous metallurgy (Styria), which experienced a significant downsizing in the last forty to fifty years. In France, most of the declining or closed sites are belonging to former hydropower-based heavy industries such as chemical industry (calcium carbide in Savoie, chlorine in the Grenoble region) and electrometallurgy (metal smelting in Savoie, steelmaking in Isère), but also to cement industry (Grenoble-Chambery region). Similarly, Switzerland has also a prevalence of closed sites in former energy-intensive industries, with high shares in nonferrous metallurgy (aluminium industry in Valais) and some significant cases in chemical industry (e.g. TAMOIL refinery in Collombey) and ferrous metallurgy (e.g. Monteforno in Bodio). The case of Slovenia is instead very heterogeneous, counting few closed or downsized sites yet equally distributed among all the sectors (and generally related to former state-run large facilities). In Germany, the few closed sites are mostly related to old textile and paper industries.

Fig. 5.1

Territorial census of large and complex industrial sites. Actual brownfields are black-filled shapes

3 Stakeholder Survey

The territorial census of large and complex industrial sites clearly shows that, although transnational and Alpine-wide in principle, the issue of brownfield revitalisation is affecting certain regions or even valleys much more than others. This can be explained through the above-average spatial concentration of critical sites, as well as in terms of a local overrepresentation of declining sectors. To get an insight about how (and if) the challenge of brownfield redevelopment is perceived and managed in the affected Alpine territories, a survey among relevant stakeholders from planning-afferent sectors at different administrative levels was therefore developed (see Annex 2). The selection of the right institutions to contact was related to the regional distribution of brownfields and declining sites in general, specifically focusing on spatial planning expertise with integrations from ‘side’ environmental and economic fields where required. The survey was conducted between March 2018 and October 2019.

In order to collect the requested information, a structured questionnaire was distributed electronically to the stakeholders upon a first, successful contact. The questionnaire (see Annex 3) included a short introduction to the research and five open-ended questions:

• 1) With reference to your own region, is there a real and concrete perception of the presence of disused industrial sites? If yes, in which way is this usually brought to the view of the public? If not, to which causes this lack of perception can be ascribed, despite the evidence of disused industrial sites in the area?

• 2) With reference to your own region, is there existing a specific approach towards the reuse/transformation of disused industrial sites? If yes, in which way is it formally conveyed?

• 3) According to your own experience and knowledge, which are the main difficulties encountered in the process of reuse/transformation of disused industrial sites in the Alpine context?

• 4) With reference to your own region, which are the main opportunities and/or expectations related to the transformation of disused industrial sites, in terms of economic development, environmental regeneration and socio-cultural growth?

• 5) According to your own experience and with reference to your own region, is it desirable the development of a specific transformation strategy for disused industrial sites in the Alpine space? If yes, which should be the key issues to be tackled by such strategy?

The answers to the first two questions reveal indeed many differences at the regional and national level regarding the perception, identification and management of disused industrial sites, which are mainly ascribable to the cultural background of each country and the adopted planning system. Concerning the first question, the prevailing perception of the presence of disused industrial sites is associated to the negative impacts on the landscape and the environment (abandonment, degradation, contamination). Further on, less tangible and more expert-oriented perceptions are also mentioned in connection to sustainable land use (soil consumption) and economic changes (job loss and need for restructuring).

The answers to the second question show that the issue of brownfield transformation is tackled and/or addressed in many ways and by using different programmatic and planning tools, including local and regional land use plans, financial incentives for revitalisation, intra-level cooperation frameworks, and others.

Concerning the following third and fourth questions (difficulties and opportunities of transformation), a homogenising tendency in the answers can be clearly noticed compared to the previous questions. In particular, the difficulties in the transformation of mountain industrial brownfields are, in order of recurrence/importance: a) lack of financial resources at the local level (municipalities) to influence or address the site revitalisation process, especially concerning the high costs of remediation in the initial phase; b) lack of strategic planning approaches (resource seeking, process management, long-term vision) and coordination between different administrative levels as well as between public and private stakeholders (PPP, private-public-partnerships); c) lack of potential investors with sound financial background and commitment, especially due to the marginal location of sites (low attractiveness and thus unprofitability) and the development uncertainties (lack of perspectives); d) lack of technical expertise and political capacity at the local level, which limits the chances to initiate, address and manage the transformation of complex brownfield sites (also in terms of promoting new development models); e) lack of available data and reliable information regarding the actual situation of disused sites both at the regional level (census/database) and the local level (site characterisation).

Concerning the eventual lack of pressure for the site redevelopment, which is actually expectable in these peripheral mountain contexts, it must be said that surprisingly this is rarely mentioned as a real difficulty. What seems to be problematic for the redevelopment process is not the pressure itself, which is vividly expressed, but more the framework conditions to enable the process to take place (administrative, financial and legal issues, e.g. on contamination and reclamation). On the other hand, there is a common understanding between all the interviewed stakeholders on the main opportunities and expectations of brownfield redevelopment. Listed by recurrence/importance and thematically clustered, these are: a) economic development and/or diversification at both local and regional level, mainly through the establishment of new and profitable economic activities on the sites (new industries or leisure/recreation, depending on location and context). This will allow the creation of new jobs and thus increase the life/work attractiveness of municipalities and regions; b) environmental regeneration, in terms of compensation (renaturation, reforestation) and also, indirectly, by limiting further land take through the sustainable reuse of already used/urbanised areas; c) socio-cultural development and/or regeneration, especially through active heritage management and identity-building.

As noticeable, the economic issues gain most of the attention among the interviewed stakeholders. This might be related to the fact that in average Alpine regions without significant shares in tourism and agriculture, manufacturing and related services still hold a key role in the local economic system. In contexts where long-established industry has profoundly shaped the local labour and skills system, or where accessibility bottlenecks limit intra-regional daily commuting, the loss of core industrial activities, as it can be the closure or downsizing of one or more large industrial sites, makes therefore the creation of new jobs and business a key priority. Some of the interviewed addressed, in addition, that the economic-related opportunities connected to brownfield revitalisation are strongly influenced by the location of the sites. In this perspective, the most favoured sites are those located within or in proximity to urban areas, while more isolated sites have a lower relevance in economic terms. Various opportunities connected to environmental and social regeneration are also mentioned by the interviewees, but somehow these are perceived as a second priority, something that can be taken into consideration if the economic objectives of revitalisation are already achieved. It is interesting to notice how the potential contribution of brownfield redevelopment in limiting further soil consumption is especially felt, or addressed, in those local contexts with long industrial tradition and thus densely urbanised (e.g. Valle Camonica/I and Leoben-Obersteiermark Ost/A). Concerning the last question, the need for a specific transformation approach for Alpine brownfields is generally perceived as real and concrete by all the interviewees. In particular, the aspects that such approach must necessarily address can be grouped in three main ‘clusters’: process management (alternative or temporary uses for the transition phase and improvement of site resilience in the view of future changes), improve framework conditions (cooperation scheme, legal and financial support tools, scenario-building) and sharing knowledge (including best practices and mutual learning).

4 Regional Types

The distribution pattern of complex industrial sites derived from the territorial census, integrated by the arguments and knowledge from institutional stakeholders and experts, provides enough elements for a comprehensive yet detailed overview on the current situation. What emerges from the overall mapping procedure, in particular, is the recurrence of specific geo-economic contextual conditions in which the majority of Alpine brownfield sites are found—and have to deal with. Through the comparative analysis and synthesis of the mapping outcomes it is possible therefore to outline an ‘interpretative’ geography of Alpine brownfields, that is, a qualitative distribution pattern. The latter recognises four regional types as the main territorial frameworks for analysing the presence of complex industrial sites in traditional sectors (including related brownfields)—for an overview, see the attached map Regional types (Fig. 5.2). These are described as follow:

• old industrial regions, characterized by a high density of industrial sites in declining sectors (textile industry, steel industry, former branches of electrometallurgy and electrochemistry) and a substantial lack of more advanced industrial activities in leading sectors. These regions can be mainly found in inner Savoie (lower Tarentaise and Maurienne valleys), Piedmont (Turin valleys, Biella foothills and Ossola), Lombardy (Bergamo-Brescia valleys) and Upper Styria (Mur-Mürz valley). Due to the outdated industrial mono-structure, old industrial regions are those where brownfield recycling is mostly associated to economic restructuring and diversification. This latter achievement is however blocked or relented by structural limitations such as a constantly growing number of complex brownfields to deal with, a rather high administrative fragmentation and capacity (lack of major urban poles) and the low pressure for site redevelopment (due to out-migration and social marginalization). The strong attachment of local communities to industry (in terms of identity, employment and skills) makes the perspective of re-industrialization a highly desirable one, although the proper conditions for its realisation (investors, knowledge generation and transfer institutions, etc.) are usually lacking in these contexts. Therefore, different strategies and alternative development pathways have to be identified. A good way could be to consider at first all the existing and potentially future brownfields as a single territorial system (sharing the same infrastructures, spatial patterns as wells as environmental and socioeconomic challenges), thus developing a strategic coordination at the regional level able to address a successful large-scale transformation program. Furthermore, other activities than manufacturing can also be considered to foster economic diversification at the regional level. It might be the case of the touristic- and cultural-oriented reuse of disused industrial sites, which can be rather successful in mountain contexts due to the potential linkages with unique landscape and environmental assets.

• industrial-tertiary regions of type 1, characterized by a significant presence of old industrial sites in traditional sectors (in sharp decline) as well as a high density of recently developed light industry clusters related to tertiary-based production cycles (tourism, services, logistics, higher education and research). These ‘restructured’ old industrial regions are mostly found in the Western Alps—e.g. the southern Sillon Alpin (Grenoble-Chambéry agglomeration), the Rhone valley from Visp to Lake Geneva, the Rhine Valley between Chur and Bregenz, the Ivrea and Cuneo foothills—but also, to a minor extent, on the eastern edge of the Alps—e.g. the Sava valley north-west to Ljubljana, the Mur valley north to Graz and the Industrieviertel. In most of these contexts, the recycling of brownfield sites is usually confronted with a developed and dynamic economic system, a high accessibility and also a significant population growth. But also, with an increasing soil consumption, rising conflicts between competing economic activities and urban functions and landscape preservation. In reason of their size, location and accessibility, large brownfield sites constitute here valuable land reserves for the expanding regional productive system, under the principles of land recycling and densification. This means that concrete strategies towards the redevelopment of brownfield sites as e.g. business parks are prioritised, such as in Valais—where 7 industrial sites of Cantonal relevance, among which 3 former aluminium smelters, are identified as Pôles de développement économique (PDE)—and in the Communauté de communes du Grésivaudan—where the existing brownfield sites are converted in Zones d'activités intercommunales (ZA).

• industrial-tertiary regions of type 2, characterized by a rather young and dynamic economic structure mostly developed after 1970, often as side-effect of inner-alpine suburbanisation and/or peri-alpine metropolisation processes. Here, highly specialized clusters of light industry often connected to regional innovation hubs largely exceed, by size and relevance in terms of employee and output, the few existing traditional industrial sites. These regions are generally found in proximity or around major urban centres and agglomerations, such as Nice-Cannes, Annecy-Geneva (including the Arve valley), Lucerne-Schwyz, Lugano-Varese-Como (Ticino-Insubria), the lower Inn valley from Innsbruck to Rosenheim, the Adige valley including Bolzano-Merano and Trento-Rovereto poles, Belluno, Salzburg and Klagenfurt-Villach. In these contexts, the transformation of the few existing brownfield sites is strongly influenced by their location and, specifically, by the proximity to urban poles and regional transport-hubs. Most favoured sites are of course those located in major cities (e.g. Michelin/Trento, Alumix/Bolzano) and relative agglomerations (e.g. Vetrotex/Chambéry, Viscose Suisse/Emmen-Lucerne), which are suitable for mixed-use and inward urban development. Less favoured sites are those located in peripheral areas or outside urban cores (e.g. Papierfabrik Baum/Miesbach, Alumetal/Mori), which are usually left apart due to the scarce competitiveness in terms of reuse and investments. However, within expanding inner-Alpine agglomerations the recycle of less-favoured peripheral brownfields might represent a potentially valuable chance for decentralising urban functions, which means to avoid urban sprawl and suburbanisation by pursuing a more sustainable, polycentric development at the regional or valley scale.

  Fig. 5.2

  

  Regional types

• rural-industrial regions, characterized by a very limited presence of old industrial sites within predominantly rural (or scarcely urbanised) contexts, sometimes with a relevant tourism-based economy. Mostly found in the Eastern Alps, these regions can be roughly identified with the Allgäu-Außerfern, the Salzkammergut-Traunviertel, the southern Eisenwurzen, the Slovenian Carinthia and the Carnia in Friuli. In the Western Alps, similar regions with much lower extension are the Moyenne Durance and part of the Ligurian Alps. The lack of pressure in terms of urban land reuse makes the reconversion of brownfields, in these contexts, mainly oriented towards environmental and landscape regeneration, thus favouring ecological restoration and renaturation strategies. The economic potential connected to brownfield redevelopment is not always fully understood and/or perceived, although good opportunities to develop ‘green’ economic activities linked to local natural resources are existing.

The regional types so identified, supported and integrated by the outcomes of the territorial census and the stakeholders survey as well, provide a rather heterogeneous, mixed quantitative-qualitative overview of the current situation of Alpine brownfields. This constitutes indeed a valid basis for the implementation and development of the following characterisation and testing phases.