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The IP television services quality is a critical issue because of the nature of transport infrastructure. Packet loss is the main cause of service degradation in such kind of network platforms. The use of forward error correction (FEC) techniques in the application layer (AL-FEC), between the source of TV service (video server) and the user terminal, seams to be an efficient strategy to counteract packet losses alternatively or in addiction to suitable traffic management policies (only feasible in "managed networks"). A number of AL-FEC techniques have been discussed in literature and proposed for inclusion in TV over IP international standards. In this paper a performance evaluation of the AL-FEC defined in SMPTE 2022-1 standard is presented. Different typical events occurring in IP networks causing different types (in terms of statistic distribution) of IP packet losses have been studied and AL-FEC performance to counteract these kind of losses have been evaluated. The performed analysis has been carried out in view of fulfilling the TV services QoS requirements that are usually very demanding. For managed networks, this paper envisages a strategy to combine the use of AL-FEC with the set-up of a transport quality based on FEC packets prioritization. Promising results regard this kind of strategy have been obtained.

The flower market of the Terlizzi agro-industrial district (Bari, Italy) represents the 20% of the Italian production, which is the second in Europe after the Netherlands. The main products are cut flowers and plants in vase, in particular roses and cyclamens. In this framework the European Project "Ecoflower Terlizzi" was carried out to support the implementation of a sustainable environmental policy in the Terlizzi district. The project was aimed at defining the criteria of environmental quality of the flowers produced in this area and includes both the definition of an EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) programme and of a local eco-label (type 1). To reach this objective environmental analyses and LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) studies were carried out on a sample of seven enterprises representative of the Terlizzi's production systems. They were analysed on the basis of on-site data collection including materials and components for structures and equipments, energy and water consumption, fertilizers, pesticides and other chemicals used in the cultivation phase. Three farms produce roses with soilless cultivation systems, two produce roses in soil and two produce cyclamens' pots. In this paper the main issues concerning the application of the LCA methodology to the production of roses and cyclamens and the results obtained will be presented. Thermal energy consumption gives the main contribution to the environmental impacts of the roses' life cycle. For the cyclamens' pots the main contribution comes from the seedlings production. For both productions, electricity consumption, structures and equipments give a significant contribution to the environmental impacts.

This paper presents the results of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study conducted to determine the environmental burdens associated with cut flowers and pot plant greenhouse cultivation. The goal of this research is to provide an objective environmental analysis of greenhouse ornamental production and point out technical and operational solutions in order to reduce the environmental burdens produced by cultivation. In order to define the environmental friendly strategy in the area of the U.E., a research has been carried out within project "Ecoflower Terlizzi" (LIFE04 ENV/IT/000480) based on ISO standardisation guidelines, with the participation of Italian ornamental growers. Twenty-two farms of the greenhouse districts of Terlizzi, near Bari in the southern Italian region of Apulia, were chosen in order to analyse the environmental sustainability of soil and soil-less production. The data gathered within project concerned greenhouse typology (structure and covering), equipments (heating, electric, irrigation, etc.) crops (rose, daisy flower, chrysanthemum, carnation, lily, cyclamen, etc.), consumption of water, fertilisers, pesticides, substrates, nutrient solutions, energy consumed for the cultivation and the running of solution distribution systems. The results, based on CML2001 interpretation method (Guinee et al., 2001), show that plastic covering materials instead of glass, the use of thermal screen for energy saving, an optimization of structures, equipments and agronomical management can reduce environmental burden of ornamental cultivation mainly generated by fuel, pesticide and fertilizer emissions.