Il recupero dei terrazzamenti del ciglione carsico come processo di sviluppo locale e di salvaguardia del paesaggio

In this paper we reconstruct the recent evolution of the landscape between the coastline and the south-western reliefs of Karst in the Trieste area; this is a territory with limited residential and productive uses, where altitude may vary within a range in excess of 300 metres. This condition, combined with the area’s hydrogeological instability, has affected the relationship between man and land over the centuries. The construction of infrastructure (the railway, in the mid-19th century, and the highway in the 20th) allowed the expansion of residential settlements in the municipalities concerned, as well as strengthening links between Trieste and its industrial area (Monfalcone) and Friuli, whereas these had previously been limited to the Karst alone. These modifications had important consequences on land use, revolutionizing the landscape whose features had been determined by agriculture and the presence of terraces, whose traces are still visible today. In the first part of this work we analyse the historical dynamics that resulted in the landscape changing, with research based on cartographic evidence and descriptions found in the main guides of the local area published in subsequent periods. In the second part we investigate the condition of Trieste after World War II, in relation to land-use changes. Lastly, we observe the most recent issues emerging in the debate with regard to the recovery of the area.