The Ripagnola coast: from heritage to strategic resource

The Ripagnola coast is a coastal area located in the eastern part of the town of Polignano a Mare. This area is characterized by a significant ecosystem and environmental value with historical buildings (so-called trulli), as well as natural components on land (caves and lame) and sea (prairie of oceanic Posidonia and coral reefs). This demonstrates the uniqueness of the coastal agricultural landscape. However, the latter has been under the threat of increasing urban settlement pressure. The existing gap has been widened by the phenomena of illegal settlement and spontaneous occupation that occur on the coastal strip within the delimited protected area of 300 meters, where seasonal exploitation of houses and campsites is damaging the natural landscape preventing its use by the community. The site is legally and environmentally ready to start the process of redevelopment and protection. However, public action proves unable to oppose the illegal operations that still affect the area, as well as to provide the territory with appropriate protection measures and management.Starting from the case of Ripagnola coast and analyzing the trend of cases over time, this contribution aims to reflect on how coastal territory enhancement can cope with anthropic transformations and vulnerabilities related to environmental risk together with the demand for accessibility and tourism through the establishment of a regional park. The latter represents an opportunity for a new joint landscape project between public authorities and communities, focused on sustainable and lasting development of the territory also in social and economic terms. The implementation of the park, which has now been undertaken by the Apulia Region to avoid further speculation, has been followed by an intense social mobilization campaign (collection of signatures and thematic meetings), thus showing a deep awareness of the coastal patrimonial value. This contribution intends to analyze this action to understand the potential effects on the strategies of tourist enhancement in an eco-sustainable key.