General description of Velina

Editor's note 11Feb13: Source D131-3.6

Location and history

The town of Velina, part of the municipality of Castelnuovo Cilento, extends over an area of around 4.13 km², situated along the River Alento in area of flat, fertile land, well-suited to agriculture and with easy access to one of the main roads in the area. The town’s history since 1724 is marked by the Marquis family Talamo-Atenolfi, who is until today playing an important role in the area’s history. Since the early 1900s the family introduced several agricultural innovations, including irrigation systems and the establishment of a farmer’s consortium. These innovations were accompanied by several state initiatives and works with regard to land reclamation and tobacco cultivation.

The agricultural sector is still expanding in the area as is the population.

Climate

Velina’s average altitude is around 280m. The amount of annual rainfall varies between 500mm and 1500mm. Mean monthly and annual temperatures are between 16° and 17°C. Evapotranspiration is higher in the summer months and lower in winter months.

Topography, soils and hydrology

 Velina comprises predominantly of alluvial plains crossed by Apennine Rivers covering 60% of the area and coastal hills. Altitude is generally lower than 150 m a.m.s.l. -the highest altitude is 76m a.m.s.l. The most common aspects are flat (22 % of the area) and West (15.45%). The prevalent slope value is under 8% (80% of the area). Nearly all of the territory is covered by Calcari-Fluvic Cambisols soil.

Parent material is predominantly alluvium (94% of the area) and soil texture is moderately fine. Soils are very deep, well drained and contain rock fragments under 20%.

Velina is crossed by effluents of the Alento River.

Ecosystems and land use

With regard to ecosystem classification, the majority of the area is Cultivated and to much Inland water and Forest.

Velina is included in the National Park of Cilento and Vallo di Diano and also includes a portion of the Alento River Sites of Community Interest.

Land cover data show that around 66% of the territory is covered with Non Irrigated Arable Land; higher than the Alento study area (less than 4%). Over 12% is principally agricultural land with natural vegetation, while around 14% of the area is classified as Discontinuous Urban Fabric, much higher than the study area (1%).

Population, employment and income

Population density in Velina is very high. While the net migration rate remains positive, average population age has increased over the years. However, the elderly index has increased less than that of Alento as a whole, and the youth dependency index has decreased more or less in line with all the townships in the study area. Numbers of local people employed in agriculture have steadily decreased over the years whilst employment in other sectors has increased while agriculture has seen a large increase in foreign workers. 

The value added per capita for the study community for 2009 results higher than the average value for Alento. Services and agriculture provide a lower VA than that of the Alento average whilst VA in industry is higher.

The social fabric of Velina has changed considerably over time, exhibiting a decrease in salaried workers and an increase in self-employment. The Human Development Index (HDI) is higher than that of the Alento area and in line with the national average.

The percentage of the resident population completing school and continuing with further education as well as employment-to-total-resident-population ratio have increased over the years.

Particular LEDD issues in Velina

The agricultural land in the community of Velina is characterised by intensive farming and extensive irrigation, making it susceptible to the types of LEDD inherent to these types of land-use, namely soil sealing, nitrate pollution and salinisation. One of the principal causes of increased soil sealing in this community over the last few decades has been population influx. Similarly, increased infrastructure for the tourism industry further increased risks associated with soil sealing. Another principal driver of soil sealing is intensive farming practices, in particular greenhouse farming, which has a high presence in the community of Velina. As for soil salinisation and nitrate pollution, despite the lack of soil conductivity readings in the study area, soil salinisation forecasts predict a high level of salinisation in coastal areas and a moderate to high risk on the alluvial plains based on current trends both in agriculture and developments to infrastructure: communities on the alluvial plains already displaying negative trends in terms of increasing intensification of agriculture and urbanisation/tourism expansion, as is the case in Velina, will experience problems with salinisation and higher risks of nitrate pollution, if current trends are not reversed.

• Next >