The research agreement between the University of Bologna and the Municipality of Castelfranco Emilia, leader of the consortium of Municipalities of the Sorbara Union, concerns the identification and assessment of the environmental and spatial sustainability of the new Urban General Plan that the Union is going to develop in compliant with the new regional urban planning law. The assessment foresees to gather and systematize spatial and environmental data to have a deep understanding of the urban regeneration potential, and then to assess planning choices, reasonable alternatives and related effects on the environment and the territory.