There is a new green barrier protecting the site of the Cascina Borio final waste disposal facility that the Riccoboni Group is constructing in Sezzadio (Alessandria). In 2020, on the occasion of National Tree Day, which is celebrated every 21 November to raise awareness about the important impact that plants have on the lives of humans and on the environment, the planting of approximately 700 Leyland cypresses was completed. These will form a hedgerow, acting as a screen for provincial road 195 and along the south and southeast edges of the facility.
These trees, belonging to the Cupressaceae family, are very common in the Mediterranean Basin, thanks to their ability to withstand extreme heat and sudden hard frosts as low as -20º C.
Creating a barrier of vegetation is a valuable contribution to the ecosystem. In an area such as the Po Valley, which suffers from high concentrations of fine particulate matter, trees are the best defence for reducing both particulate levels and pollution from greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. What’s more, they protect against noise and help to absorb water from rainfall.
The belt of Leyland cypresses is temporary; the plan is for the hedgerow eventually to be removed (with the trees being replanted elsewhere), once the waste disposal site ceases to be used. This will allow the connection with the surrounding farmland and forest to be re-established and the results of the Riccoboni Group’s environmental restoration project for the area, which include the bedding out of 18,000 native plants across 10 hectares of land surface, to be enjoyed.
The bedding out of 700 new trees on the Cascina Borio site is evidence of the Riccoboni Group's commitment to mitigating the impact of the new facility on the local area, including in terms of the landscape. Moreover, the trees’ foliage will serve as a new windbreak and a welcoming shelter for local avifauna.
