Management Practices Boosting Ecosystem Services and Life Cycle Assessment of Italian Olive Groves

The main ecosystem services identifiable for traditional olive groves are listed and analyzed according to the standard definitions (MEA, Ecosystems and human well-being: a framework for assessment. Island Press, Washington, DC, 2005). The possible ecosystem services obtainable with new and improved management practices will be discussed, with the aim of assisting in the choice of new agronomic practices for sustainability. Although being so widespread and having a relevant impact on the economy and the market, olive growing is associated with several adverse effects on the environment that cause resource depletion, land degradation, pollutant emissions, and waste generation. The impacts of olive cultivation and olive oil production may vary significantly according to the practices and techniques applied, therefore, appropriate analysis techniques to assess those impacts are of utmost importance. It is of fundamental importance the choice of evaluation method to approach toward the ecosystem services knowledge. LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) is one of the most widely applied environmental assessment methods in recent years, which allows to characterize and quantify the impacts in terms of specific indicators (e.g., global warming, human toxicity, eco-toxicity, and water depletion potential) and/or end-point indicators (human health, ecosystem, and resources) taking into account all phases of the life cycle of a product or service. The methodology is standardized and normed by ISO 14040-14044 (ISO 14040:2006 life cycle assessment – principles and framework. International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, 2006a; ISO 14044:2006 life cycle assessment – requirements and guidelines. International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, 2006b). The strength of this methodology mainly stays in the possibility of analyzing all life cycle phases, detecting burden shifts and hotspots, and taking into account background and foreground systems. Many of these indicators can make a useful contribution to the assessment of the impacts on ecosystem services and the Italian olive landscape, even if there is not yet a specific framework or a consolidated approach to assess ecosystem services with life cycle methods. In this paragraph, a short review about the contribution of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach applied to Italian olive growing and oil production is carried out to investigate the environmental implications of traditional and new sustainable practices of olive-orchards in Italy, also in terms of ecosystem services.