Luigi Pennetta

Holocene Evolution of the Salpi Lagoon (Puglia, Italy)

ABSTRACT This paper attempts to reconstruct the evolution of the Salpi lagoon during the Holocene. The authors examined archaeological evidence and historical documents supplemented by field data. The research highlights the role of climatic variations and human interference in evolution of the lagoon. The data collected show that: At the beginning of the Holocene the sea level rise caused the development of a sandy barrier between Gargano Headland and Murge. This barrier enclosed a wide coastal lagoon, called “Laguna di Salpi”. Favourable environmental conditions permitted human occupation on the inner side of the lagoon during the early Neolithic by populations coming from the eastern coasts of the Adriatic Sea. At the end of the Neolithic the lagoon evolved into a sabkha and the whole area was abandoned until end of the 3rd millennium B.C. Between the III and I millennium B.C. the lagoon, communicating by several entrances with the sea, was deep enough for navigation. Between the II and I century B.C. the Tavoliere coastal area was affected by malaria and the lagoon settlements were abandoned. During the Middle Ages the Tavoliere coastal plain was almost depopulated, whereas the area around the lagoon was densely inhabited. Despite many attempts at reclamation during the Modern Age the whole Tavoliere was a malarial area. The lagoon then turned into a large coastal swamp which survived up to the 1930s when, after the “Serpieri - Iandolo” law, radical reclamation activities began. Two areas of the ancient Holocene lagoon still survive: the first is a swamp called Palude Frattarolo, the second is an area dedicated to salt production, called Saline di Margherita di Savoia.

Some results of coastal defences monitoring by ground laser scanning technology

A general coastal retreat affects almost all the beaches of the Apulia region (southern Italy). In particular, the coastal strip of the Gulf of Manfredonia shows an evident retreat due to human activity. To control coastal erosion, several defence interventions have been realised: breakwaters, shore parallel defences, and, above all, several types of groynes (rectilinear, hook-shaped, T-shaped) were built along the shoreline in accordance with local request. Nowadays, there are about 300 coastal defences built up to protect against human activities. A laser scanner survey of these defences, using a Leica Geosystems HDS3000, was carried out between April 2006 and September 2008 to collect data about the beach profiles and changes occurring in the defence framework. The survey work consists of 3D rendering of defences in order to make comparisons between scans of different periods. Overlap between the points cloud of the whole coastline showed that defences preserved their own profile when no human interventions took place. Moreover, throughout the length of the investigated area, not a single trend occurred in the beach profile: according to the defence framework, some stretches of coast display advancing trend, while others are stable or retreating. Therefore, this preliminary study indicated that the changes that occurred in the beach profiles and defence structures are mainly due to human interventions.

Desertification Vulnerability Map of Tavoliere, Apulia (Southern Italy)

Abstract Please click here to download the map associated with this article. Desertification strongly affects Southern Italy. One of the most vulnerable areas to desertification is the Northern Apulia, known as Tavoliere, which is also one of the more arid zones in Italy. In this study we have produced a desertification vulnerability map at a scale of 1: 25,000 of Tavoliere by combining two different approaches proposed, respectively, by the Sardinian Regional Agrometeorological Service and by Pimenta et al. (1999). The methodology, implemented within a geographic information system, is based on the combination of three indices (aridity index, drought index and soil loss index), each of which is related to one important water related field in the desertification process.

Climatic characteristics of middle-southern Apulia (southern Italy)

Abstract Please click here to download the map associated with this article. The purpose of this work is to make a climatic map in order to show several variables concerning climate type in a Mediterranean region. The study is focused on the middle and southern part of Apulia region, southern Italy, an area of approximately 12,170 km2 between 39°45′ and 41°30′ N and 15°40′ and 18°40′ E. The map uses mean annual temperature as a background for the number of dry and cold months, and is supplemented with secondary maps which highlight the characteristics of a dry climate. Rainfall and temperature records of 46 thermo-pluviometric stations, over a 30 year period, were interpolated by kriging: the main map takes into account the Rapetti and Vittorini pattern, while for the other graphics the Thornthwaite and Mather water balance model was followed. Both these methods focus on factors which determine drought in a land of low rainfall such as Apulia region.

Geomorphological Map of the Salento Peninsula (southern Italy)

Abstract Please click here to download the map associated with this article. A geomorphological map of the Salento peninsula is presented at a 1:120,000 scale. The map was compiled by combining the available geological and geomorphological information with data derived from: (a) Digital Terrain Model interpretation, (b) an analysis of aerial photographs at a 1:33,000 scale and (c) a geomorphological fieldwork. The Salento peninsula, the southeast portion of the Apulia region in southern Italy, shows peculiar geological and geomorphological characteristics: it is a karstic area, nearly flat, with subsiding zones (Graben) between small ridges (Horst). They were originated by tectonic stresses, resulting in scarps of normal faults and, therefore, in macroscale structures. In addition, some exogenous (meso- and microscale) landforms were originated on the Graben structures, where there are permeable miocenic, pliocenic and pleistocenic sediments with muddy-clayey strata and others which stand on carbonatic substratum, represented by limestone, dolomitic limestone and dolomite, main lithologies of the Horst structures. The results are presented on the map, using a geographic information system (Arcview software). In addition, a digital terrain model, produced from a spatial analysis of contour lines, provides a general topographical setting.

Spatial evolution of the December 2013 Metaponto plain (Basilicata, Italy) flood event using multi-source and high-resolution remotely sensed data

ABSTRACT We present a multi-layer, multi-temporal flood map of the event occurred on December 2013 in Basilicata (southern Italy), documenting the spatial evolution of the inundated areas through time, as well as some ground effects of floodwaters inferred from the imagery. The map, developed within a GIS and consisting of four, 1:20,000 scale, different layers, was prepared using image processing, visual image interpretation and field survey controls. We used two COSMO-SkyMed synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images, acquired during the event, and a Plèiades-1B High-Resolution optical image, acquired at the end of the event. We also used the information derived from the satellite imagery to update some local features of the OpenStreetMap (OSM) geospatial database, and then integrated it within the flood map. A classified multi-temporal dynamic map of inundation and flood effects has been produced in the form of a multi-layer pdf file (Main Map).

Evolution of the Ofanto River delta from the ‘Little Ice Age’ to modern times: Implications of large-scale synoptic patterns

We reconstruct the evolution of the Ofanto River delta from the 17th century to the present using historical maps (1600–1850), official IGM topographic maps (1850–1980) and recent aerial photographs (2015), and we compare long-term morphological changes with the evolution of the delta of the Volturno River during the same time period. The aim of this study is to define the role of climatic (flood frequency, synoptic pressure patterns) and anthropogenic factors (deforestation, anthropogenic sediment subtraction of river sediment) in the evolution of the Ofanto delta. We analysed the importance of each factor on the evolution of the delta and compared them with the simultaneous behaviour of the Volturno delta to highlight the role of large-scale synoptic pressure patterns. We found that the main driver of different delta evolution phases is weather-climatic condition, while anthropogenic factors interacted with the delta evolution in different ways but did not control the first-order evolution. In particular, analysing the data on recent floods, we found that the most favourable situations for both rivers are omega-blocking, deep low-pressure trough and strong meridional circulation (mode Ω) which create Mediterranean low-pressure systems. Instead, a zonal circulation (mode W) can only cause floods on Volturno. Because the evolution of a delta is driven by the frequency of floods, and because we found that the frequency of floods is guided by synoptic patterns, a relationship can be established between delta evolution and synoptic patterns in the past. Consequently, past phases of the contemporary progradation of the Ofanto and Volturno deltas suggest the increasing frequency of mode Ω, while phases of simultaneous progradation of the Volturno delta and stability and/or retreat of the Ofanto delta are indicative of the increasing frequency of mode W. The only exception occurred during the last evolutionary phase (60 years), when anthropogenic sediment subtraction was prevalent.

Erosion hazard assessment along the Capitolo coast (Monopoli, southern Italy)

Erosion affects about 25% of the coast of the Apulia region, with the severest consequences being along sandy coastlines. Beach retreat is mainly due to the decrease of solid material transport, the destruction of dune deposits and the building of docks that obstruct the longshore current. A survey was conducted around Capitolo, the main sandy coastline near Bari, to examine the hazards affecting beaches and to provide guidelines for the management of human activities along the coasts. The survey was carried out along a coastal stretch of about 3 km, extending in a South Easterly direction from 17° 21′ 30″ E, 40° 54′ 20″ N to 17° 23′ E, 40° 53′ 40″ N. The map, at a scale of 1:3000, shows three levels of hazard, determined as follows: (i) the state of preservation of the dunes and watercourses, based on the geomorphological map of the Apulia region; (ii) data collected from July 1989 to April 2008 by the Monopoli buoy of the National Wave Measuring Network; (iii) the shoreline change rates computed within a geographic information system (GIS). A matrix was established taking into account of these features, weighting each parameter in order to develop a hazard-level measurement for shoreline lengths of about 25 meters. The results show that all Capitolo beaches have a high level of shore preservation hazard. The results of this study should be a factor in any decisions made on the management of the present day village, both existing commercial activities and the future development of the area.