The 3rd Conference of the International Association for Biomonitoring of Environmental Pollution

The èVRgreen project, a collaborative initiative between the University of Verona, the Municipality of Verona, and the University of Padua, aims to assess and enhance urban ecosystem services, focusing on air quality, urban heat islands, and biodiversity. The methodology integrates remote sensing, via the i-Tree Canopy tool and environmental sensor networks, with a comprehensive multi-taxa biomonitoring approach. To evaluate air quality, a large-scale citizen science campaign involving 542 students utilised epiphytic lichens to calculate the Lichen Diversity Value (LDV) across the urban area. Concurrently, broader ecosystem quality and soil integrity are monitored in both revegetated and semi-natural sites. This is achieved by assessing hoverflies (Syrphidae) collected via Malaise traps as ecological indicators, alongside soil macroinvertebrates captured in pitfall traps to determine the Soil Biological Quality Index (IQBS). By combining rigorous spatial analysis, diverse ecological bioindicators, and public engagement, èVRgreen provides a robust and replicable framework for monitoring urban biodiversity and informing environmental policy.