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4. Nature
The most effective way to fully protect nature and conserve it is through planned protection measures organized at state level. The amount of Italian territory under state protection in one way or another is 10%. Environmental protection laws have allowed many nature parks and reserves to be opened solely for developing nature in all of its forms.
Italy has 18 National Parks, 89 Regional Parks, 270 Regional Reserves, 142 State Reserves, 47 Marsh reserves and 7 Marine Reserves, which are protected zones managed either by the State in some form - Regional Councils, Provincial Councils and Municipalities - or by the environmental and protection associations. The National Parks are: Abruzzo (the oldest, officially opened in September 1922), Gran Paradiso (opened a few months after the Abruzzo park), Circeo, Stelvio, Calabria, Pollino, Monti Sibillini, Arcipelago Tuscany, the Caserta Forests, the Belluno Dolomite mountains, Aspromonte, Cilento-Vallo di Diano, Gargano, Gran Sasso-Laga, Maiella, Val Grande, Vesuvius, and Gennargentu-Asinara-Golfo di Orosei.
