Massimo Monteleone

• PhD
• Professor (Associate) at University of Foggia

The energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources is a key goal for the European Union, among others. Despite significant progress, Italy lags far behind the EU’s target of generating 55% of its electricity from renewables by 2030. The Apulia region in Italy needs to achieve an additional 7.4 GW of installed renewable energy capacity com...

Agriculture plays a dual role in shaping biodiversity, providing secondary habitats while posing significant threats to ecological systems through habitat fragmentation and land-use intensification. This study aims to assess the relationship between bird species composition and land-use types in Apulia, Italy. Specifically, we investigate how diffe...

The energy transition from fossil fuels to renewables is part of a more general ecological transition that the European Union (EU), among others, is actively pursuing. Despite significant progress, Italy lags far behind the EU's target of generating 55% of its electricity from renewables by 2030, compared to 36% today. Renewable energy is a very sp...

Agriculture plays a dual role in shaping biodiversity, providing secondary habitats while posing significant threats to ecological systems through habitat fragmentation and land use intensification. This study evaluates the impact of land use types on avian biodiversity in a predominantly agricultural landscape in Apulia, Italy, by analyzing 20 sit...

The Mediterranean region is experiencing severe droughts and unprecedented high temperatures. In terms of salinity, about 18 million ha of land, or 25% of the total irrigated area in the Mediterranean, is salt affected. The use of halophytes as intercropping species to mitigate the effects of salt stress is attractive. Halophytes have a great capac...

Coastal wetlands deliver essential ecosystem services, including cultural services, which provide non-material benefits such as recreation, education, and spiritual enrichment that are crucial for human well-being. This study investigates the cultural ecosystem services provided by a 40 ha coastal wetland in the Gulf of Manfredonia, southern Italy,...

Wild edible plants, botanically defined as phytoalimurgical species, have historically been a useful source of food to cope with recurrent famines and poor farming conditions. If properly identified, harvested, transformed and promoted, alimurgical plants could further enhance the wellbeing of rural and urban communities and the multifunctional pro...

The European Parliament has recently passed the “Nature Recovery” law to restore degraded ecosystems and prevent natural disasters as part of its “Biodiversity Strategy 2030” and “Green Deal”. In this respect, wetlands can provide a wide range of ecosystem services such as biodiversity conservation, hydrological land protection, provision of produc...

A relatively new planning tool in Italy is the Local Forest Plan, which stands at a broader level in the land planning scale compared to the Forest Management Plan but at a finer scale considering a Regional or even National Forest Plan. This intermediate scale was considered the most appropriate for working out a planning process based on a multi-...

A multi-disciplinary approach based on the biorefinery of microalgae biomass (Chlorella sorokiniana) to remove the lipid fraction responsible of the green color and the ‘fishy’ aroma and vacuum impregnation technique to create innovative apple snacks with improved nutritional properties has been investigated. The pressure (150 mbar – 650 mbar), vac...

Improving soil-water relations by amending soil with biochar might play a significant role in increasing water availability for agricultural crops as well as decreasing water loss through drainage or runoff. While the effects of biochar on the hydrological properties on coarse-textured soils are generally positive and well-documented in the literat...

In the EU, bioenergy is by far the most significant renewable energy source and more than two thirds of biomass utilized for energy conversion consists of forestry and agricultural residues, such as fruit tree pruning. Although still underutilized, biomass from pruning is a relevant energy feedstock that does not generate additional demand for land...

A sequential extraction process has been designed for valorizing globe artichoke plant residues and waste (heads, leaves, stalks, and roots left in the field) by means of green extraction techniques according to a biorefinery approach. We investigated two cascading extractions based on microwave-assisted extractions (MAE) and green solvents (water...

Leaching of soluble elements from cultivated soils is a major concern to meet the target of agricultural sustainability in most areas. The effect of biochar application to a cultivated soil on water drainage and the consequent solute losses was assessed during a trial carried out over two consecutive growing seasons. Biochar was added to a loam-tex...

The Mediterranean climate is marked by arid climate conditions in summer; therefore, crop irrigation is crucial to sustain plant growth and productivity in this season. If groundwater is utilized for irrigation, an impressive water pumping system is needed to satisfy crop water requirements at catchment scale. Consequently, irrigation water quality...

Mediterranean climate is marked by arid climate conditions in summer, therefore, crop irrigation is crucial to sustain plant growth and productivity in this season. If groundwater is utilized for irrigation, an impressive water pumping is needed to satisfy crop water requirements at catchment scale. Consequently, irrigation water quality gets worse...

European lacustrine systems are frequently exposed to nitrate (NO3-) pollution causing eutrophication processes. An example of these lakes is Shkodra Lake, a large, shallow lake shared by Albania and Montenegro, in the Balkans Peninsula. Shkodra Lake is a natural sink that collects NO3-from agricultural activities, widely diffused in the surroundin...

Transhumance is a very old form of pastoralism where livestock is moved seasonally between higher and lower pastures. The historical sheep track represents a valuable ecological asset that needs to be maintained. This study consisted in the agro-ecological characterization of the sheep tracks landscape and the detection of areas having higher conse...

Cropland diversity was the focus of this work to support regional policy in a land planning perspective for the development of both the agriculture and renewable energy sectors. Considering the Capitanata region (South of Italy) as a case study, the land share-out in agricultural crops have been assessed by using two different approaches: a) multi-...

A conceptual vision of gasification and pyrolysis systems, fueled with agro-residues and agro-industrial by-products, is discussed in this study. The aim is to plan actual implementations and possible developments of bioenergy in Mediterranean rural regions, towards accelerating the transition to post-fossil fuels regions, with self-sustainability....

A 3-year field trial was carried out in southern Italy on an agricultural farm close to the seacoast of Manfredonia Gulf (Apulia Region) where crop irrigation with saline water is standard practice. Seawater intrusion into the groundwater, and the consequent soil salinization represent a serious environmental threat. Each year, two crop cycles were...

This policy-oriented opinion paper, which has taken the form of a Manifesto, is co-authored by scientists and engineers from Southern European Union countries that are presently experiencing deep and complex systemic crises: Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece and Cyprus. With their Manifesto, the authors advocate the adoption of a new development model...

The electrical conductivity of saturated soil paste extracts with respect to the electrical conductivity of extracts obtained applying different soil-water dilution ratios (from 1:1 to 1:5) was estimated considering 194 soil samples of different texture, salinity, and pH. A smaller data set composed by 50 samples was used to estimate exchangeable s...

Biochar incorporation into agricultural soils has been proposed as a strategy to decrease nutrient leaching. The present study was designed to assess the effect of biochar on nitrate retention in a silty clay loam soil. Biochar obtained from the pyrogasification of fir wood chips was applied to soil and tested in a range of laboratory sorption expe...

This paper presents a new European initiative, the uP_running project, which aims to set the path for the development of the bioenergy utilisation of agrarian pruning and plantation removal (APPR). These woody residues are not being used currently, although they present a high potential in the European Union due to a large cultivated area of vineya...

Soluble bio-based substances are isolated from the alkaline hydrolysate of composted urban gardening wastes. These substances are capable to reduce the ammonia content in municipal biowaste anaerobic digestates. The present work reports the anaerobic fermentation of the organic humid fraction of solid municipal biowaste carried out in the presence...

MBW) yield soluble bio-based substances (SBO) by anaerobic digestion, composting and chemical hydrolysis. The SBO are known valuable products for multiple uses in the chemical industry, agriculture and animal husbandry. The present work investigates a new SBO property, i.e. reducing the ammonia content in MBW anaerobic digestates. Thus, MBW were fe...

There are some features in the energy valorization of agricultural residues and in their carbon footprints calculation that are still very difficult to detect, and, therefore, they are frequently neglected. A general assumption for the environmental assessment of bioenergy systems is that crop residues are “carbon neutral.” Nevertheless, these resi...

This study examined some management strategies of wheat cultivation system and its sustainability in using straw as an energy feedstock. According to the EU regulatory framework on biofuels, no GHG emis- sions should be assigned to straws when they are used for energy. Given this relevance in the current energy policy, it is advisable to include al...

Olive oil production is a significant economic activity in the Mediterranean basin and a considerable employment source, while the environmental pressures associated with the olive tree farming and olive oil extraction are remarkable and increasingly important. Olive farming and olive oil processing are generating large quantities of solid and liqu...

Climate change mitigation is the most important driving force for bioenergy development. Consequently, the environmental design of bioenergy value chains should address the actual savings of both primary energy demand and greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions. According to the EU Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC), no direct impacts and no GHG emis...

An integrated approach combining procedures based on Geographical Information System together with Multi-Criteria Analysis (GIS-MCA) was developed to tackle the logistics of biomass-to-electricity in the area of Apulia, Basilicata, and Campania in Southern Italy. The spatial availability of straw (from durum wheat) and tree-pruning (from olive-grov...

This work tackles the need to overcome the dependence of our societies on fossil energy sources and to establish a productive model focused on the highest harmonization with biological processes based on renewable energy sources. The first step is to start from agriculture. The productive success of industrial agriculture is entirely based on the e...

Phycobiliproteins extraction (primary refining) from Gracilaria gracilis seaweed, harvested in Lesina Lagoon (Italy) and further valorization of the residual algal via pyrolysis (secondary refining), were investigated with a cascade biorefinery approach. R-phycoerythrin (7mg/g d.w.), allophycocyanin (3.5mg/g d.w.) and phycocyanin (2mg/g d.w.) were...

Energy planning is a strategic tool to assess a possible matching between actual biomass availability and energy uses. The “supply-driven” approach is based on the energy resource assessment while “demand-driven” methodologies are mainly focused on the integration of different types of options, on a given territory, in order to define the most effe...

RÉSUMÉ L’utilisation de carburants obtenus à partir d’huiles végétales est une occasion de répondre aux exigences de la commission de l’Union européenne pour l’obtention de sources d’énergie renouvelables. Ceci concerne particulièrement les pays méditerranéens où les producteurs agricoles sont bien connus pour leurs cultures huilières. Le tournesol...

According to the EU Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC), no direct impacts from residue removal and no GHG emissions should be attributed to cereal residues (straws) when they are removed from agricultural land for the purpose of bioenergy utilization. Crop residues, on the other side, play a critical role in sustaining soil organic matter and...

Agricoltural residues and wastes from agro-industrial processes represent a suitable feedstock for energy conversion. At the same time, they can play a role in preserving soil fertility, also contributing to soil carbon sequestration. Therefore, a trade-off between the two targets should be achieved. The aim of this paper was to analyze a very repr...

If biomass energy is to be used as a substitute of fossil fuels, the energy provided should be clearly much larger than the fossil energy needed to produce it. Low input agricolture, therefore, should be explicitly targeted in the management of biomass energy crops. Determine the overall energy balance means taking into account both the energy requ...

The approach of combining pyrolysis or pyrogasification processes for energy production with biochar addition to soil takes advantage of biochar’s proven ability to retain cations, remove CO2 from atmosphere, regenerate degraded lands and reduce environmental pollution. To evaluate the full potential of biochar as soil amendment, precise knowledge...

ZnO nanocrystals of different shapes and sizes have been synthesized using an innovative, simple and efficient dry reactive milling methodology using Zn(NO3)2 and various polysaccharides as sacrificial templates. Optimum results were achieved using extracted agar from the red seaweed Gracilaria gracilis. Upon template removal after calcination at 6...

A great many people have already embraced the need for education and training as a key to moving the workforce and society in general toward a sustainable living process. Education bodies and employers are beginning to recognise this trend and know about the need for training in the manifold aspects of sustainable development (SD). Different action...

In recent years seaweeds have increasingly attracted interest in the search for new drugs and have been shown to be a primary source of bioactive natural compounds and biomaterials. In the present investigation, the biochemical composition of the red seaweed Gracilaria gracilis, collected seasonally in the Lesina Lagoon (Southern Adriatic Sea, Lesi...

In the frame of a crop rotation currently applied in a farm of the Apulian Tavoliere (Southern Italy), this paper reports the effect of brackish water irrigation on soil, outlines the corresponding salinity balance, formulates quantitative relations to model salt outflow below the soil root-layer and defines operational criteria to optimize irrigat...

Thset rinaccreta sing limitation of available water resources for agriculture raises the issue of an appropriate use of low quality water (particularly brackish or saline water) for agricultural productivity without jeopardizing the quality of soil and its productive capacity. Referring to typical Mediterranean climate conditions and assuming a sys...

In the frame of a crop rotation currently applied in a farm of the Apulian Tavoliere (Southern Italy), this paper reports the effect of brackish water irrigation on soil, outlines the corresponding salinity balance, formulates quantitative relations to model salt outflow below the soil root-layer and defines operational criteria to optimize irrigat...

After a synthetic review of the most worrisome pressures applied over soils and waters, general criterions and normative principles that have to lead the technical intervention on soil and water protection are accounted, both with respect to farm activity and land planning. The salinity problem is faced, then, through the analysis of the nature and...

A two-year trial was carried out on sweet sorghum, grown in semi-arid environments of southern Europe. The trial was aimed to monitor the main components of the crop N-balance under different irrigation regimes and nitrogen fertilization rates, in factorial combination. A rainfed condition (only one watering soon after sowing) was compared with a d...

A 15N-labelled fertilization trial was carried out on sweet sorghum, grown in semi-arid environments of southern Europe with the aim to monitor the efficiency and effectiveness of the N-fertilisation technique under irrigation and different nitrogen fertilization rates, in factorial combination. A rainfed condition was compared with a full irrigati...

A general consensus on bio-energy and renewable energetic sources is expressed by modern societies; at the same time, some concerns and uncertainties are related to the actual ecological and environmental standards that these new technologies are able to fulfill. The overall energy demand is permanently rising as the economic growth spread through...

After a synthetic review of the most worrisome pressures applied over soils and waters, general criterions and normative principles that have to lead the technical intervention on soil and water protection are accounted, both with respect to farm activity and land planning. The salinity problem is faced, then, through the analysis of the nature and...

Sunflower is one of the leading oilseed crops cultivated for the production of oil for human consumption, which is also considered an important crop for biodiesel production. During the period 20032007, the average annual world production of sunflower seed was about 28.5 million t from a cultivated area of approximately 22.6 million ha. Sunflower o...

This paper presents significant results obtained in the context of Cyberpark project focused on the use of satellite data for pre-operational monitoring of natural protected area. In particular, the use of MODIS measurements was manifold, we used them for obtaining: (1) Estimating fuel moisture (2) mapping fuel properties (type and loading) 3) Esti...

Although pasta is generally not considered for its aromatic properties, some evidence proves that cereal flours release volatile compounds and they might have an effect on the aroma of the transformed products. This work reports on the characterization of the volatile components of semolina and pasta obtained from four durum wheat cultivars (Tritic...

Cyberpark 2000 is a project funded by the UE Regional Operating Program of the Apulia Region (2000-2006). The main objective of the Cyberpark 2000 project is to develop a new assessment model for the management and monitoring of protected areas in Foggia Province (Apulia Region) based on Information and Communication Technologies. The results herei...

The need of introducing crops dedicated to energy production in the rural patterns requires a specific land evaluation and a proper choice of the energy crop mixes. The environmental impact of the agro-energy system should be assessed trough both a land evaluation under defined agro-ecological conditions and an assessment of the crop impact and com...

A suitable exploitation of biomass for energy use requires an integrated analysis of the available potential resources, their spatial dispersion and their actual accessibility to the chain supply. In the case of dedicated energy crops, a careful evaluation of the most proper crops with respect to the pedoclimatic and agro-ecological conditions, as...

A "hydro-salinity balance" could be considered as an objective method to detect salt increase into the root soil layer due to brackish water irrigation. A permanent experimental field-unit was established in autumn 2006; three plots of 100 m 2 each (6.4 x 15.6 m) were delimited; at the center of each plot an artificial draining basin was arranged d...

High-value and intensively managed crops usually take advantage of large amounts of irrigation water and nitrogen fertilizers, therefore greatly contributing to the risk of groundwater contamination due to drainage water and nitrate leaching. The problem is much more difficult to manage in case of brackish irrigation water, due to saline groundwate...

High-value and intensively managed crops usually take advantage of large amounts of irrigation water and nitrogen fertilizers, therefore greatly contributing to the risk of groundwater contamination due to drainage water and nitrate leaching. The problem is much more difficult to manage in case of brackish irrigation water, due to saline groundwate...

Warm-season grasses and legumes have the potential to provide forage throughout the Mediterranean summer when there are high temperatures and low rainfall and when cool-season grasses become less productive. Twenty-nine non-native, warm-season pasture species (twenty-three grasses and six legumes) were assessed for their adaptability to the coastal...

Localized wounding is known to induce systemic proteinase inhibitors (PI) in seedlings of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.). Inhibitors of elastase (EC 3.4.21.36) were shown here to be among those systemically induced by wounding, and a simple rapid assay for PI based on elastase was developed. Using this assay, the nature of the systemic signall...

The effects of pre-planting low temperature storage of seed cloves on the bulbing process of two garlic accessions were studied during a two-year experiment (1993-95) in a typical Mediterranean area (40° 40′ N; 16° 34′ E). Three different storage periods of increasing length were tested each year. The bulbing process was examined performing an anal...