ASBD

The AgriBioDiversity project, started in 2003 in Val d’Agri (Basilicata region) of Italy.

In 2007 Eni’s commitment to biodiversity conservation continued by carrying out Biodiversity research, monitoring and mitigation projects. The global expenditure totalled 10.4 million euros (+40% over 2006) and involved 90 people, 82% of whom were from research institutes. The activities involve international nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) such as FFI (Fauna and Flora International) and IUCN (International Union for the conservation of Nature and Natural resources) as well as research institutes (Bologna and Lecce universities). The projects relate to particularly sensitive environmental, terrestrial and marine eco-systems. In these sites Eni has adopted the EBI (Energy and Biodiversity Initiative) approach, subsequently supplemented by the IPIECA-OGP Guidelines.

The main projects are:

• AgriBioDiversity in Val d’Agri (Italy): biodiversity study, impact assessment and mitigation;
• Biodiversity – Mediterranean sea: study of the ecosystemic role of offshore platforms in various marine eco-systems;
• VillanoBioDiversity in Ecuador: survey on the impact of activities in sensitive eco-systems (i.e. rain forests) and identification of mitigation and restoration measures;
• Arctic Biodiversity and BioSea II in Norway: biodiversity study in sensitive eco-systems and eco-systems that have not been much altered by human activities (Arctic Ocean), and stakeholder involvement for the definition of best practice.

The approach utilized in the projects makes it possible to study, in a comprehensive way and right from the start, the area affected by the whole lifecycle of a development project.