INWIT and WWF together to prevent fires in wooded nature reserves
INWIT will install advanced technology on some of its infrastructure, able to detect fires at an early stage in three protected wooded areas managed by WWF
Rome 14 December 2022 – INWIT, Italy’s top tower operator, and WWF Italy, an environmental NGO, launch a collaboration for the protection of wooded nature reserves.
Using a special technology installed on INWIT towers, the project aims to automatically detect and promptly signal the spread of forest fires in specific areas, thereby safeguarding the biodiversity present.
Three WWF Reserves have been selected to start monitoring: Macchiagrande (Rome), Bosco di Vanzago (Milan) and Calanchi di Atri (Teramo).
In line with the ongoing debate at the COP 15 on biodiversity in Canada, INWIT decided to collaborate with WWF Italy to contribute to its protection, combining varied expertise for a common goal, aware that Italy is considered a hot-spot of precious biodiversity to be protected from the increasing risks posed by climate change, such as fires, the main threat to Italian woodlands.
“The collaboration with WWF is a sign of INWIT’s commitment and the potential of our towers for use in environmental and territorial monitoring,” said Diego Galli, INWIT General Manager. In a logic of ‘tower as a service’, given the ramified distribution of our infrastructure throughout Italy, we can host advanced technology on our sites to safeguard biodiversity and make our green areas safer for everyone”.
“Biodiversity is fundamental to ensuring the health and functionality of natural ecosystems. That’s why we need to commit to preventing the damage caused by two of the main threats to biodiversity, namely anthropogenic pressure and climate change,” said Marco Galaverni, WWF Italy’s Program and Reserves Director. “Thanks to the collaboration with INWIT, we will be able to protect our Reserves better, precious treasure troves of Italy’s biodiversity. One thing we need, in particular, is to be able to receive rapid alerts in case of forest fires, the frequency and intensity of which is increasing in Italy, and thereby promptly intervene to prevent extensive damage to the forest ecosystem and its rich biodiversity”.