During the ICOS10 celebration, marking the first decade of ERIC status for the research infrastructure, the Italian station of Capodimonte was officially recognized as an operational station within the European ICOS network.
The labeling was approved during the General Assembly, held in Helsinki on 26 November, during the week celebrating the first ten years of ICOS as an ERIC. Capodimonte was the only Italian station to receive the labeling during this year’s proceedings.
This recognition confirms that the site, located in the Royal Wood of Capodimonte, meets the quality criteria, instrumentation requirements, and procedures defined by ICOS: the data produced by its instruments are therefore integrated into the ICOS international database, the Carbon Portal, and can be used by scientists, policymakers, public administrations, and citizens with transparency and rigor.
For the city of Naples, and particularly for the Royal Wood of Capodimonte, the ICOS labeling enhances the area’s value as a true urban laboratory—not only a museum and green lung, but also a site of environmental research.
“The ICOS labeling assigned to the monitoring station of the Royal Wood of Capodimonte,” says Terenzio Zenone, researcher at CNR IRET and data manager of the site, “marks an important milestone: the transformation of a historic and cultural green area into a scientific hub of European relevance. Thanks to continuous and standardized measurements of greenhouse gases and carbon balance, Capodimonte stands as a model of how natural, urban, and cultural heritage can be integrated with science and environmental policies.”
“The process to obtain the labeling was long and complex,” adds Teresa Bertolini, co-PI of the station and CNR IRET researcher, “but it allowed us to improve the environmental monitoring station and make it compliant with ICOS standards. We are proud of this achievement. At a time when the climate crisis demands reliable data and informed decisions, the new status of the station represents a concrete and significant sign of the research activities carried out by the IRET section of Naples, thanks also to the foresight and environmental awareness of the technicians and the director of the Royal Wood of Capodimonte.”
