The Park with the Town Inside...
With the Italian Regional Law no. 11/19, in force since Friday 19 April, the Piedmont Region approved the expansion of the territory of the Gesso and Stura River Park, also changing the name and status of the reserve area, which has become "Gesso e Stura Natural Park". The four new Municipalities that become part of the Park territory - Fossano, Trinità, Salmour and Rittana - bring the total of adherents to 14. With this expansion, the Park reaches an extension of 5,500 hectares (1,500 more than the previous structure), with a total population of 120,000 residents, while the kilometers of river included in the area become 70. It is an area on the outskirts of the city centre, where inhabited areas combine with production plants, urban garden areas and natural environmental sites. The environmental quality of the park can be deduced by its faunistic and vegetation features. At the moment, 214 bird species (22 of them are listed in the Habitats Directive), 25 mammal species, 54 diurnal Lepidoptera (one of them is listed in the Habitats Directive), 41 dragonflies, 8 reptiles, 9 amphibians (4 of them are listed in the Habitats Directive) have been recorded. The vegetation is characterised by large areas of forest (more than a quarter of the total), wood arboriculture, arable lands and grasslands. Oak and black alder forests represents areas of great interest, which are widespread near areas with high water retention due to the presence of springs.
