The "Lungavilla Wetlands" Nature Reserve is located between the Coppa and Staffora streams in the municipality of Lungavilla, in the Oltrepò Pavese region.

It covers a total area of approximately 76 hectares and includes three small lakes. Officially established in 1984, it is considered one of the "historic" local parks in the region.

The reserve was created on a vast area degraded by the massive and indiscriminate clay excavations carried out in the first half of the last century, when brick production was a thriving industry in Lungavilla and the Lower Oltrepò area. Once a source of employment for hundreds of workers, the abandoned kilns and clay quarries later became a significant urban, landscape, and environmental issue.

The recovery of most of the disused clay quarries, achieved through the establishment of the Wetland Park, represents an important example of environmental restoration with naturalistic, educational, and recreational purposes.

In 2010, the region officially established the new "Lungavilla Wetlands" Nature Reserve. The process to create the reserve was initiated by the Municipality of Lungavilla, which had already promoted and established the Wetland Park as a Local Park of Supra-municipal Interest (PLIS) in 1985.

Interdisciplinary studies have highlighted the high level of natural integrity of the area, with a rich presence of animal and plant species. Research has also shown that the site serves as a favored wintering area for numerous species of aquatic birds and as a refuge for some species during the hunting season.

Amateur and sport fishing is permitted with the purchase of a daily permit.

SOURCE: MUNICIPALITY OF LUNGAVILLA