Urban versus Rural: the decrease of agricultural areas and the development of urban zones analyzed with spatial statistics

Until a few decades ago it was very easy to distinguish between city and country: in most cases the edge was defined by defensive barriers. In recent times, the relationships between urban and rural areas completely changed, placing the country in a subordinate position. Consequently, many terms have been coined in order to describe the new phenomena taking place between city and country. The term adopted, “periurban area”, despite its large use, does not have a clear and unambiguous definition. Such various approaches are due to the complexity of the phenomenon to be analyzed and to the huge variety of territorial contexts in which it may reveal. The phenomenon is characterized by urban growth with soil consumption generating loss of competitiveness for agricultural activities. This paper defines more precise rules in order to describe the periurban phenomenon, using techniques of spatial statistic and point pattern analysis. This approach has been tested in the case of study of Potenza municipality. Interest in this area comes after the earthquake of 1980, when a large migration of inhabitants began towards the countryside around Potenza.