Wetlands are severely endangered ecosystems worldwide. They provide important services, like water supply, recreation opportunities, flood and climate regulation. Still, they are also considered as disruptive areas, a source of mosquitoes and diseases, which is why they are frequently destroyed by changes in land use. Their degradation is likely to advance from this time forth due to climate change processes. It is, therefore, important to examine how the local population understands the importance of wetlands in coping with different coastal risks in West Sardinia. Our study is focused on West Sardinia (municipalities Cabras, Oristano and Arborea), counting for remarkable biodiversity of wetlands. This area is characterized by high environmental and agricultural pressures which intensify the vulnerability of the coastal areas. To test for local population's preparedness to change, data collection was performed through field methods and questionnaires. The study was undertaken by asking key questions on the role of wetlands and willingness to pay to protect from future events (contingent valuation exercise). The results indicate that the locals do not seem to be aware of the regulating services provided by wetlands, but are willing to invest in order to mitigate climate change-related hazards. The obtained results could serve in future governance frameworks for the mitigation of natural hazards in the Mediterranean region and wider.
Risk management indicators are used to mitigate the potentially dramatic effects of natural hazards. Local authorities and managers use them in elaborating rescue and urbanism plans, which do not always work, highlighting society's vulnerability in the particular context of global environmental and climate changes. Within this context, the United Nations (Sendai, 2015) advised to construct a series of indicators to better cope with human losses and economic disasters. Actually, the question is whether or not such indicators do constitute successful decision-making tools. In this article, we critically reviewed the recent literature (from 2013 to 2017) using the Web of Science database of Clarivate Analytics to assess how indicators are currently being constructed in risk management, with a focus on risks of inundations, coastal and seismic risks. This task allowed us to discuss the spatial and temporal scale at which indicators of risk management can be applicable, to what extent they should be physically oriented and if they can fit the needs of governance framework. Based on our findings, we suggest further work on a new series of less descriptive, more dynamic and more user-friendly indicators. Finally, we encourage the dire need for continuous work to overcome the misinterpretation of used indicators and how to reduce the communication gap between the scientific community, decision makers, managers and the population.
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