Bosco Limite is located in the middle basin of the Brenta river, in the northwestern part of the Po valley (Veneto Region, Italy). Bosco Limite is the largest forest infiltration area in the Venetian plain and an expansion design is currently under development. The objective of the case study within the SpongeScapes project is to collect a more robust set of data and to explore the possibility of making this solution systematic in landscape planning. The case study is located in the Veneto region that signed the Mission Charter of the EU Mission on Climate Adaptation.
Case study area
5,72 km² forest
Climate and soil
Mediterranean mountains bio-region
Pebble, sand soils
Sponge measure
Surface and groundwater
(Forest Infiltration Area)
1. Challenge
The forest infiltration area aims to find alternative solutions to various problems in the Po Valley: starting from the over-exploitation of the land, up to the intensive use of the aquifers, through the loss of biodiversity and the increase of pollutants in the air.
2. Type of sponge measures
The sponge solution is a forest infiltration area of about 2.5 hectares, a former cropland that was transformed into a typical lowland forest in 2013 thanks to a collaboration between Etifor | Valuing Nature and the local farm. The forest of Bosco Limite is based on a hydraulic system, made of canals and wells, whose function is to infiltrate water into the gravelly soil in situations of water “surplus” (i.e., high meteorological input or low irrigation demand). Given the favourable location of the area, the average water storage capacity of Bosco Limite is estimated to be about 1 million m3/ha/year, and it influences groundwater level in an area of 10 km radius.
3. Monitoring
Data recorded: 2022-present (infiltration rates, soil parameters).
4. Stakeholders
Private owner, Municipality of Carmignano di Brenta, Land Reclamation Consortium Brenta, Veneto Region’s Agency for Innovation in the Primary Sector, UNIPD, ATO Brenta, ETRA, Coldiretti Veneto, Veneto Acque.
5. Reference information
More on Etifor website (Case study owner)