Vision and Project to Retrofit the “Urban Dust” Scenario: Simulation in the Region of Umbria, Central Italy

Abstract

This article sets out our research on the issue of dispersed urbanization (urban dust) and methods of reducing and controlling the phenomenon of land take. The case study of the Umbria region in Italy is used to outline some simulated scenarios of regional territorial physiognomy where a more targeted method of planning and designing settlements had been chosen to favor their aggregation and protect the vast landscape heritage of the region instead of the weak urban development policies that led to the current dispersion. The uchronia produced is useful in understanding the consequences caused by over half a century of poor territorial control. It also serves as a starting point for the development of retrofit policies for the current settlement model. By applying simulated solutions, the “urban dust” effect, today distinguishable throughout the region and in large parts of the country, would have been close to zero. The same urbanized surfaces present today would have been aggregated into larger, more compact areas within the main historical agglomerations. In addition to the application of volume and surface aggregation models, it would surely have been necessary to resort to more efficient “plans” and “projects” guaranteeing better functional quality of urban systems, the protection of natural and rural landscapes from the siege of urbanization and the reduction of the current high, infrastructural density. The positive effects of urban compactness are low infrastructure rates in territories, greater efficiency of transport and public services and the significant reduction in ecosystemic fragmentation of habitats.