We report the results of the questionnaire starting from question number six, since the first five are about the user’s identification and acceptance of the privacy policies.
Q6: “What is the primary use that you make of soil sealing maps in your current practices and duties?”
This question foresaw some possible answers plus an open text field to give the possibility to add a different answer. As expected most of users intend to use the maps to support the decision-makers, for monitoring purposes or to support reporting obligations.
Q7-Q8: Apart from the localization of impervious surfaces, do you think that soil sealing maps should be enriched with other ancillary information?
According to the user answers, the soil sealing map is not used alone in their work but enriched with other ancillary data.
Figure 3 shows the type of ancillary data declared in the questionnaire. Considering that most of the users intend to use the soil sealing maps to support the territorial or environmental policies, it is not a surprise that the most ancillary data indicated is a Land Cover/Land Use map.
Q9: Which type of data do you typically use with the soil sealing maps?
Question 9 is related to data used by the users with the soil sealing map (Figure 6). The results of the previous question are confirmed in this question: the most used data are the technical/thematic cartography.
Q10: Will you exploit the project output once available?
Question 10 is related to the exploitation of the soil sealing maps produced in the project framework. Most of the users intend to use the maps, but it depends on the quality of the resulting products.
Q11: If you answered Yes to the previous question, how will you use the project output?
DSS and planning is the most vote answer.
Q12: Are any other elements to be included in the first 11 artificial surfaces? If yes, please specify which one(s) The questions from 12 to 21 regard the definition of soil sealing. In Table 2 are listed the land cover classes included in the definition of soil sealing, the question 12 queries the users about the completeness of the list. The most important suggestion here is to include in the definition also the green roofs.
Q13: Considering the 11 categories included in the definition, do you think some of them should be excluded? If yes, please specify which one(s)
This question received no answers.
Q14-15: Should soil sealing maps distinguish between reversible and not reversible soil sealing?
Questions 14 and 15 are focused on the classification of soil sealing areas as reversible and not reversible. The largest number of the users (77%, see Figure 7) agrees on this further classification, and they consider this information very important (average rate to question 15).
Q16: How Permanent plastic-covered soil in agricultural areas (e.g. non-paved greenhouses) should be considered?
It does not emerge any clear tendency in the user answers to this question (Figure 10) only a small preference to include this feature in the sealed surface group.
Q17: Should the Dump sites be included in the definition of artificial surfaces?
Regarding the dump sites, although there are six users (46%) that prefer to have them in the definition of soil sealing, other seven users have a neutral opinion (Figure 9). Therefore, also in this case, no clear tendency emerge.
Q18: Should the Mines and quarries be included in the definition of artificial surfaces?
For the mines and quarries, the users who answer the questionnaire have a dominant opinion to include these land cover features in the definition of soil sealing (Figure 10).
Q19: Should the Railway tracks outside built-up areas be included in the definition of artificial surfaces?
For the railway tracks emerge a clear tendency in including them in the definition of soil sealing (Figure 13).
Q20: Should the Construction sites without discernible evolving built-up structures be included in the definition of artificial surfaces?
For the construction sites in the very early stage of their evolution, the users who answered the questionnaire prefer to include them in the soil sealing definition (Figure 12).
Q21: Should Solar panel parks be included in the definition of artificial surfaces?
There is a clear majority of the users who prefer to include solar panel parks in the definition of soil sealing.
Q22: Do you consider 20 km inland from the coastline an appropriate extension for your purposes?
Regarding the extension of the Area of Interest (AOI), the buffer of 20 km from the coastline is considered appropriate for most of the users. There is also a 23% of the users who would prefer a smaller buffer. Only three users consider the AOI small for their needs (Figure 16).
Q23: Are there any other specific sites in your area of interest relevant for coastal dynamics that should be included?
This question is related to the previous one, and according to it, only three users who answered the questionnaire would add a new area to AOI (Figure 15).
