Search

In river basins, the deep interrelationships between land-use changes, soil erosion and rivers and shoreline dynamics are clearer than at a national or regional scale. Southern Italy is an ecologically fragile, desertification-prone territory where land-use changes in the last decades were significant. Notwithstanding this, studies dealing with multidecadal land-use changes in large-sized river basins of Southern Italy and their implications on soil erosion are missing. In this study, we assessed the land-use changes that occurred between 1960 and 2012 in the 3245 km2-wide Sele River basin. We carried out GIS-aided comparisons and analysis of two land-use maps and interpreted the results in terms of soil erosion intensity based on a detailed review of the scientific literature. The results confirmed the trend of the inner areas of Italy and, in particular, of the Campania region moving towards more pristine conditions, with an increase in forest cover, mainly at the expense of grasslands. Agricultural areas remained substantially unchanged, while the area of urban settlements increased. The diffuse afforestation of slopes suggested an overall decrease in soil erosion intensity, which was fully coherent with the geomorphological evolution of both the Sele River and local shoreline reported in literature.

As highlighted by the EU Water Framework Directive from 2000, the hydromorphology of a stream, besides water quality and biological aspects, is one of the main elements to be evaluated to correctly assess its ecological state. Notwithstanding this, there are no such studies in peninsular Southern Italy. This study provides a contribution to filling this gap by assessing the morphological quality of one of the major rivers of this area, i.e., the Calore River, by using the IDRAIM method. The latter presents the advantage of taking into account the specific Italian context in terms of channel adjustments and human pressures, together with pre-existing geomorphological approaches developed in other countries. The method is based on data obtained by means of GIS analysis, remote sensing, and field survey. The analysis provided encouraging results, highlighting the good morphological quality of the Calore River. To maintain such quality, accurate monitoring of the human activities and/or careful planning of structures that could negatively affect the river’s morphological quality is unquestionably needed. The Calore River morphological quality seems to be controlled by artificiality rather than by the channel changes experienced since the 1950s. The results will be fundamental for already planned studies dealing with flood hazard and risk assessment.

In the Taburno-Camposauro Aspiring Geopark (southern Italy), a significant part of the geological history of this stretch of Apennines (a fold and thrust belt formed since the early Neogene) can be read. Inside this area, 44 geosites were identified, described and evaluated. The geosites identification was based on one or more characteristics (geological, geomorphological, hydrogeological, etc.) that were able capturing the observer's interest and telling the geological history of this area. The observations were supported by a scientific characterization based on literature data. Among the most considered parameters, there is the representativeness as geological topic, process, features in the study area. In this sense, it was considered, for example, that the shallow marine limestone outcrops of the middle Cretaceous, with evident polychrome residual fillings, were an element of extreme scientific value. This is confirmed by a vast scientific literature (peer-reviewed papers, geological maps, etc.), which guarantees its uniqueness within the limestone successions of the Apennines. For at least two centuries, these rocks were extracted, and nowadays the worked stones, called improperly "marbles", adorn the monumental buildings not only in Italy (Caserta, Naples, Rome), but also abroad (France, England and even Russia). These features add further educational and touristic value to the geosite. Despite the mining activity, the main topic is almost intact in the quarry, which is easily. Its security, however, should be improved. Another highly representative geosite, due to both its geological significance and scenic value, is the village of Sant'Agata de' Goti. The village is built at the top of a structural terrace shaped on the Campanian Ignimbrite, which is a 39 ky old pyroclastic deposit. After the infilling of the valleys by the Campanian Ignimbrite, the latter was deeply dissected by the hydrographic network, which shaped structural terraces. The Campanian Ignimbrite is considered the result of the largest volcanic explosion in Europe in the last 200,000 years, as highlighted by a large amount of published scientific data. Probably due to its favourable position, this structural terrace was chosen for residential settlements since the 4th century BC. International research about this site is not limited to the geological features, but also to the archaeological and geotechnical ones, and this increases its value for touristic purposes, too. Finally, despite the fact that the new water supply system has drastically changed, the Fizzo Springs still represent the major water source of the aspiring geopark and therefore maintain their intrinsic value. Known for their considerable discharge since Roman times, they were exploited in order to feed the western coastal areas with an impressive aqueducts considered UNESCO World Heritage. In recent decades, the capture of the springs was replaced by a system of wells, so the springs lost a little in their magnificence, even if today they were inserted in a beautiful garden that is easily accessible to everyone. Probably, in a quantitative assessment, these sites would reach the highest value. However, there are others that, due to their geological significance or their visual beauty, constitute an opportunity to become a geopark.

The city of Benevento is located in an intramontane Plio-Pleistocene basin of the Campanian Apennines (Southern Italy), at the confluence of the Calore and Sabato Rivers. Most of the city lies on different orders of terraces, while the more recent settlements are located on summits and flanks of hilly relieves. The terraces, as confirmed by both literature and field surveys, have an alluvial origin and a lower Pleistocene to upper Pleistocene age. The substratum of these terraces mainly consists of conglomerates with sandy intercalations. There are also limited outcrops of silty-clayey sequences with sandy-gravelly intercalations, interpreted as results of fluvio-lacustrine sedimentary episodes. The scarps between the different orders were probably smoothed artificially over time, also using the rubble produced by earthquakes, which are still intense in this area. On the slopes that border the recent alluvial plain, landslides are frequent, especially on north-facing slopes. The most recent alluvial terraces are not older than Holocene. The substratum of these terraces consists of gravels and sands with interbedded tephras and paleosols. Currently, the main fluvial landforms are the single‐thread channels with small‐sized bars and fluvial islands of the Calore and Sabato Rivers. The geomorphological analysis, based on GIS-based comparisons of historical maps and aerial photos from different dates and supported by field data, also shows several inactive fluvial landforms, such as abandoned channels, degraded fluvial scarps and summits of river terraces, together with an intense channel narrowing. Probably, the first stable settlements of Benevento, dated back to the Archaic and Classical age, were located on the floodplains of the Sabato and Calore rivers. This allowed the exploitation of water for agro-pastoral purposes. When there was the need to organize more structured settlements, also protected from both frequent floods and military attacks, the population moved upward to the middle-upper Pleistocene aged alluvial terraces. The first settlement was probably built in the 5th century B.C. and subsequently expanded during the Roman and, then, Longobard ages. The water supply in the most elevated areas was made by a series of artificial canals built along the southern slopes of the surveyed area, prepared with suitable terracing. On the northern side, in a recently restored monumental complex dated back to the VI-VII century, the effects of a series of catastrophic events (i.e., floods and earthquakes) that affected this area can be recognized in the materials preserved there. For centuries, a clear subdivision in the land use was maintained. Namely, rural areas were located on the plain and surrounding slopes, while residential areas were located on the most elevated terraces. However, during the twentieth century, a transformation gradually occurred due to a significant demographic increase. The urban environment quickly occupied large agricultural areas, despite the fact that these areas were subject to frequent flooding, which caused extensive damage and even fatalities. In order to protect them, therefore, impressive bank works were carried out on the rivers, but in other cases the lack of care of farmers still makes difficult any recovery and mitigation intervention.

The Matese Regional Park included the northern part of Campania and the southern part of Molise regions. The total area is about 33,000 ha. The institution of the Park was due to its extreme naturalistic and environmental richness, representative of the whole Southern Apennines chain. Unfortunately, the Park institution was not fully understood by local authorities and population as a development opportunity (touristic, agricultural, etc.).Most of the area consists of an imposing calcareous massif, whose features are still completely natural. In some outcrops of Mesozoic limestone, exceptional fossils were found, among which the dinosaur cub Scipioniyx samntiyicus, popularly known as “Ciro”, is mentioned for importance, as it is recognized and studied all over the world for its excellent state of conservation. In addition to this unique specimen, a myriad of remains of fishes, reptiles, amphibians and rudists were found. To the threat of vandalism perpetrated in early years, the authorities responded by guaranteeing the conservation of the sites and fossils, but also by creating a place to welcome scholars and researchers. Thus, the Paleolab was born, i.e. a multimedial museum of geology and palaeontology with an increasing number of visitors.The widespread diffusion of karst phenomena, both epigean and hypogean, contributed to fuel an underground water circulation, which is important for both quantity and quality. This resource was exploited over time, not only at the basal springs, but also locally, for domestic, agricultural and livestock uses and even for energy production. Therefore, the pressures on this resource are important and need a care planning. Moreover, contaminations by anthropogenic activities are possible, even if limited to some marginal areas, and are not coherent with the rules of a protected area.Earthquakes could upset both the beauty of the Matese landscapes and the local activities. In fact, this area is one of the most seismogenetic ones in Southern Apennines. In historical epoch, several seismic events caused casualties and huge damages to the local settlements and even changed the physical features of the territory. However, the answers to these events became an opportunity, as they allowed both reconstructing less vulnerable buildings and the restitution of the typicality of some ancient settlements. A difficulty is nowadays represented by the alert systems, which are weak due to the articulated morphology and the accentuated dispersion of the buildings (residence and working sites).In this contribution, several indicators were considered to describe the environmental situation of the Matese Park in the framework of a model able to identify the cause-effect relationships and the response that were put in place to obtain a change in the desired direction.

The aim of this paper is highlighting the strong vine–wine vocation of the Campania inland (southern Italy) through the description of the physical features of two areas, in which two fine wines are produced: the Guardiolo, from the western sector of the Sannio area, and the Greco di Tufo, from northern Irpinia. Recently, initiatives were developed to promote these territories. They allowed attracting tourists and making these areas well-known. In order to indirectly contribute to achieve this goal, some noticeable features of the local landscape have to be considered. In fact, a careful analysis shows that they are often very important for the quality of vines and wines. Therefore, the knowledge of these features, i.e., geology, geomorphology, and pedology, especially when they are representative of the whole landscape and are attributable to the terroir, can also improve the enhancement of the territory by increasing sensitivity to the geological heritage. In this sense, the geological and geomorphological features occurring in these two wine production areas of the Campania region, which emphasize the local history and the original traditions of vine cultivation and wine production, were considered and described in this paper.

Soil erosion is a critical environmental degradation problem globally, especially in regions economically dependent on agriculture. Remote sensing proved to be an ideal method for a timely investigation of soil erosion over large areas. The aim of this study was analyzing the spatial distribution of soil erosion-prone landsurfaces in an agricultural area of southern Italy in the period 2009–2018 and investigating the environmental features more favorable in triggering soil erosion processes. The study was carried out by integrating the results of multitemporal analysis of Landsat-5 TM and Landsat-8 OLI imagery, GIS analysis, and geomorphological field survey. Erosion-prone landsurfaces were detected through their typical spectral response. GIS analysis allowed discriminating permanently eroded landsurfaces from areas occasionally affected by soil erosion or morphodynamically stable. Severe soil erosion processes affected more than a half of the study area at least once in the considered period. Permanently eroded landsurfaces accounted for 5.4% of the areas affected by soil erosion processes. Lithological and pedological features of the landsurface controlled the spatial distribution of the eroded areas more than slope angle and aspect. The proposed approach allowed producing reliable maps of the areas affected by soil erosion processes in a relatively short time and at a low cost, which represent a first but fundamental step in land management.

Il paesaggio rurale è un elemento fortemente caratterizzante il Sannio Beneventano. In particolare, in questa terra riveste un ruolo importante, economico ed estetico, il paesaggio viticolo, frutto delle complesse interazioni, avvenute nel corso dei millenni, tra l'uomo e i diversi elementi dell'ambiente fisico: suolo, litologia, morfologia e topo-clima. La superficie vitata del Sannio, nella sua interazione con il rilievo, i suoli e la sottostante litologia, oltre alla produzione di vini di pregio, dà vita a scenari di particolare bellezza, ponendosi, in tal modo, come un importante attrattore turistico del territorio. Il paesaggio viticolo del Sannio, mostra tuttavia anche elementi di particolare fragilità, riconducibili all'impatto dell'uomo sul territorio e alla peculiarità del territorio stesso: l'uso degli agrochimici, le lavorazioni dei suoli, la forma del rilievo, la natura dei suoli, le caratteristiche dei substrati geologici, l'aggressività climatica, sono alcuni degli elementi che concorrono a determinare il rischio di degrado ambientale. Pertanto, il paesaggio viticolo del Sannio necessita di essere tutelato, con regole adeguate a preservare e garantire alle nuove generazioni le sue peculiarità estetiche e produttive. Una risposta concreta, in tal senso, è venuta dalle amministrazioni comunali delle più importanti aree viticole del Sannio, le quali hanno inserito nei Piani Urbanistici Comunali adeguate norme di gestione dei territori agricoli. Le azioni individuali delle singole Amministrazioni hanno trovato convergenza in un importante progetto PON-Governance, denominato BioWine (Biological Wine Innovative Enviroment). Esso rappresenta un importante esempio di trasferimento di know-how e buone pratiche tra i diversi comuni aderenti al progetto, sui temi della tutela dell'ambiente, oltre che dell'innovazione tecnologica in agricoltura e del marketing territoriale. Il presente Capitolo illustra sinteticamente l'approccio metodologico ed i risultati ottenuti nello studio del Paesaggio BioWine del Sannio Beneventano.

Lo sviluppo e la crescita della vite, la maturazione dell'uva e gli attributi sensoriali del vino sono fortemente influenzati dall'ambiente fisico in cui la pianta è coltivata. In viticoltura, le interazioni tra l'ambiente fisico e la pianta di vite sono riferite come "effetto terroir". Secondo una definizione proposta dalla International Organisation of Vine and Wine "il terroir viticolo rappresenta un concetto riferito ad un'area nella quale si sviluppa un sapere collettivo delle interazioni tra ambiente fisico, ambiente biologico e pratiche vitivinicole, che conferiscono le caratteristiche distintive ai prodotti provenienti da quest'area. Il terroir include le caratteristiche specifiche del suolo, della topografia, del paesaggio e della biodiversità". Il concetto di terroir integra due gruppi di fattori fondamentali, quelli naturali (clima, suolo, roccia, morfologia) e quelli umani, che ne assicurano collettivamente la valorizzazione, attraverso la produzione. I fattori naturali rappresentano gli elementi più stabili della catena, alla scala umana; per contro, le condizioni climatiche dell'annata ("millesimo"), il materiale vegetale ed i fattori d'intervento umano rappresentano gli elementi variabili della stessa catena, in quanto possono subire profondi cambiamenti nel corso del tempo. I fattori naturali del terroir, sebbene relativamente stabili nel tempo, variano nello spazio. Una determinata area viticola corrisponde ad un territorio nel quale si esprime una variabilità più o meno grande di questi fattori che influenzano le performances vegeto-produttive della pianta e, quindi, le caratteristiche sensoriali del vino, determinando l'esigenza di modificare le pratiche agronomiche ed enologiche. Pertanto, la conoscenza della variabilità dei fattori naturali del terroir di un'area viticola diventa un elemento essenziale per ottimizzarne l'uso, al fine di migliorare la qualità dei vini, esaltarne la tipicità ed autenticarne l'origine. In un'ottica di viticoltura di terroir, il primo obiettivo pratico da perseguire è la suddivisione (zonazione) del territorio viticolo in ambiti omogenei (di gestione e di produzione) dal punto di vista dei fattori naturali del terroir. L'effetto del terroir può essere considerato a diverse scale: regionale, intra- regionale (o di distretto) e aziendale. A seconda della scala analizzata, la gerarchia dell'effetto dei fattori del terroir può variare. A scala regionale, o ancor più alla scala di un intero Paese, il macroclima è probabilmente il fattore dominante; a scala intra-regionale, o di distretto e scala comunale, gli effetti della geologia, della geomorfologia e del topo-clima possono essere considerati i fattori determinanti nella crescita e sviluppo della vite e nella composizione dell'uva. La variabilità a scala di tenuta può essere correlata a una variazione nei tipi e nella profondità dei suoli. Pertanto, nello studio dei terroir, il problema della scala è un aspetto molto importante da affrontare. Il Volume, dopo un inquadramento generale dell'area di studio, illustra la variabilità spaziale della superficie vitata di Castel Campagnano e concentra l'attenzione sugli aspetti climatici generali del territorio comunale di Castel Campagnano, per poi valutare le relazioni tra alcuni parametri climatici influenti sulla fisiologia e sulla produzione della vite e la morfometria del predetto territorio. Sulla base di tali relazioni sono state prodotte le Carte della distribuzione spaziale dei parametri climatici. Dall'analisi morfometrica, sono state invece prodotte una serie di Carte di parametri morfometrici influenti sullo sviluppo della vite, sulla maturazione dell'uva e sugli attributi sensoriali del vino, oltre che sulla gestione agrotecnica e ambientale dei vigneti e, più in generale, dell'intero territorio comunale. Le carte morfometriche, combinate con lo studio e la cartografia della litologia dominante e della fisiografia, hanno consentito di produrre una prima Carta delle Unità di Paesaggio del territorio di Castel Campagnano, assimilabili ad Unità di terroir naturali. Infine, la Carta delle Unità di terroir Naturali, incrociata con la Carta della superficie vitata, ha consentito di relazionare i vigneti attuali alle variabili analizzate dell'ambiente fisico in cui gli stessi vigneti ricadono e formulare ipotesi sulle potenziali performance della vite.

Since the last decades of nineteenth century, Italian rivers experienced remarkable morphological changes. Most of the previously investigated river channels were affected by intense human disturbances, which were frequently indicated as the main control factor. In contrast, the Tammaro River (southern Italy) underwent less complex human interventions than other Italian rivers, at least since the recent closure of the Campolattaro Dam in the median zone of the catchment. Thus, it represents a good example to analyze the effects of changes in climate and land use on short-term channel adjustments. In this paper, the channel adjustments experienced by the Tammaro River over a period of ~140 yr (1870–2011) were investigated. The study integrated results from GIS-based geomorphological and land-use analysis, field surveys, and analysis of hydrological data (rainfall, flow discharges, extreme floods). From the last decades of nineteenth century to the mid 1930s, the river experienced widening and a slight increase in transitional channel morphologies (Phase-1). From the 1930s to the late 1990s, the river underwent a marked narrowing and limited to moderate incision (Phase-2). The geomorphological effects of the 1949 extreme flood were superimposed on the Phase-2 response. Finally, from 1990s onwards (Phase-3), the river experienced substantial stability with respect to the changes during the previous phases and different behaviors at the reach scale. During Phase-3, changes in channel morphology were observed a few years after the closure of the Campolattaro Dam. The morpho-evolutionary phases observed for the Tammaro River were very similar, even if slightly diachronous, to those reported in the literature for more anthropized rivers of southern Italy.

This report describes the flooding features caused by an unusual weather event. This event was characterized by severe rainfall that occurred between 14th and 15th October 2015 in Benevento and the surrounding areas. Extensive damage affected populated areas due to the overflow of the Calore River and its tributaries.

On 15 October 2015, the floodplain of the Calore River underwent a destructive flood, with a stream stage increase up to 10 m. In this paper, we describe the GIS-based, object-oriented geomorphological map of the overflooded sectors of the Calore River floodplain near Benevento. The map graphically represents the field-checked results of a detailed geomorphological study carried out by means of GIS analysis of historical and topographic maps and orthophotos. Particular attention was devoted to the analysis of the channel adjustments experienced by the Calore River since the end of the 19th century, which shaped most of the landforms in the floodplain. The results showed that the investigated floodplain is characterized by abandoned channels, anthropogenic landforms, and five orders of recent river terraces separated by gently-sloping inactive fluvial scarps, less than 2 m high. On the oldest and/or more distal sectors of the floodplain, landforms are badly preserved, probably due to the more prolonged reshaping by natural erosional processes and anthropogenic activities, and to the high erodibility of the loose sediments in which they are shaped. The proposed map could be a key tool for a correct flood hazard assessment in the Benevento area, permitting thematic maps that avoid or reduce the negative effects of events similar to the 15 October 2015 flood.

La valorizzazione dei comprensori agricoli di pregio, in particolare di quelli viti-vinicoli, non può prescindere dalla corretta anali- si delle componenti "naturali" del paesaggio (rilievo, suoli e sottostante geolitologia, clima) che, interagendo tra di loro e con la gestione antropica, determinano le potenzialità produttive e le limitazioni d'uso dei predetti comprensori, oltre ad influenzarne l'aspetto estetico. Tali componenti rappresentano, pertanto, gli elementi fondamentali da considerare nella pianificazione del territorio fon- data sull'equilibrio tra validità agronomica e qualità paesaggistica, sviluppo sostenibile e valorizzazione delle aree urbane e rurali. Per offrire alle Amministrazioni locali uno strumento urbanistico multidisciplinare attento a questi obiettivi, a partire dal 1996 l'Associa- zione Nazionale delle Città del Vino si è impegnata nell'individuazione di alcune linee guida metodologiche per la valorizzazione dei comprensori vitivinicoli di qualità nella disciplina territoriale e urbanistica. Alle linee guida proposte dalle Città del Vino ha fatto riferimento Castelvenere, il comune più vitato della Campania (circa il 67% del territorio comunale è occupato da vigneti) per la realizzazione del suo Piano Urbanisti- co Comunale. L'adozione delle linee guida implica l'acquisizione e/o la disponibilità di corrette informazioni riguardanti le caratteristiche e la distribuzione spaziale (cartografia) delle di- verse componenti "naturali" del paesaggio. Nella realizzazione del PUC, il Comune di Castelvenere si è potuto avvantaggiare di una considerevole mole di informazioni prodotte da ricerche riguardanti l'intero territorio del Sannio Beneventano, realizzate dall'Istituto per Sistemi Agricoli e Forestali del Mediterraneo (ISAFoM) del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), in collaborazione con Istituzioni di ricerca ed universitarie nazionali ed internazionali. Tali informazioni, rielaborate ed integrate da quelle prodotte da indagini realizzate per gli scopi specifici del PUC, hanno consentito di caratterizzare e cartografare il territorio comunale in esame dal punto di vista dell'uso del suolo, geomorfologico-morfometrico, fisiografico e pedologico. In particolare, sono state prodotte: una Carta dell'uso del suolo, le Carte morfometriche delle quote, delle pendenze, delle esposizioni, dell'insolazione, dell'indice topografico di umidità e del fattore topografico di erosione. Le Carte morfometriche sono state realizzate a partire da un modello digitale del terreno. Tenuto conto delle relazioni quote-temperature, è stata realizzata una Carta dell'indice bioclimatico di Winkler. È stata prodotta una Carta delle Unità di paesaggio, basata sulla variabilità spaziale delle forme del rilievo e della litologia dominante, tenuto conto degli aspetti morfometrici. Ciascuna Unità di paesaggio è stata caratterizzata dal punto di vista pedologico, per produrre una Carta dei suoli. Incrociando le informa- zioni contenute nelle Carte dei suoli e delle pendenze con le esigenze della vite, desunte dalla letteratura specialistica, è stata generata una Carta delle attitudini del territorio alla viticoltura. Inoltre, sono state studiate statisticamente le relazioni tra Unità suolo-paesaggio e caratteristiche compositive delle uve della cultivar Falanghina, per produrre una Carta della zonazione viticola della stessa cultivar. Infine, utilizzando immagini telerilevate da satellite, è stata realizzata una Carta dell'indice normalizzato di vegetazione, strettamente correlato al vigore vegetativo dei vigneti. Tutti gli elaborati cartografici sono stati organizzati in un GIS-geodatabase e, in questo formato, utilizzati come elementi strutturali in suppor- to alla realizzazione del PUC. La metodologia adottata per il PUC di Castelvenere, piuttosto che una mera elencazione di regole, potrebbe rappresentare un esempio pratico da seguire nella realizzazione di altre indagini finalizzate alla pianificazione territoriale e urbanistica dei comprensori viticoli e, più in generale, di quelli agricoli.

In this paper, the preliminary results of a research aimed to reconstruct the morphotectonic framework of the Tammaro River basin are presented. The use of dedicated geographic information systems (GIS) enabled an efficient managing and processing of heterogeneous datasets, produced using GIS-aided classical techniques of geological and geomorphological analysis of the relief. On these data, advanced statistical processing procedures were carried out. The Tammaro R. basin corresponds to a sector of the Southern Apennines experiencing a general SW–NE extension, with several evidence of recent seismicity, and looks very similar to other intermontane basins hosted along the axis of the Apennines. The basin is dominated by NE–SW striking faults that seem to be the key structures for the morphotectonic evolution of the area. NW–SE, N–S and E–W azimuthal sets of faults are also well represented and seem to have played a minor role. The existence of these faults is confirmed by clear geomorphological evidence, such as fluvial elbows, subsequent reaches of streams, straight slopes shaped as triangular or trapezoidal facets, fault scarps and displacements of five orders of palaeosurfaces.

A striking coastline, about 100 km long, characterizes the southernmost part of the Campania region. It is comprised within one of the largest National Parks of Italy, named “Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni Park”. The coast preserves a great number of geological and geomorphological features, frequently well integrated with anthropic structures, which makes it a unique landscape. The morphology of the coastal area of the Park is characterized by hills sloping down to the sea, where alternate bays with small beaches and rocky headlands, hosting a large number of Norman-Aragonese watchtowers. Limestone cliffs display impressive karst landforms, such as caves, which have undoubtedly favoured human presence since the Middle Paleolithic. In this suggestive landscape several landforms and deposits permit to reconstruct the Quaternary-aged sea-level changes.

The geomorphological changes experienced by the middle and lower Calore River (Southern Italy) between 1957 and 1998 were investigated. Data derived from field surveys and interpretation of topographic maps and aerial photos were introduced into a geographic information system (GIS) and processed. The results showed that the Calore River underwent a mean narrowing of 66 %, with a peak of 86 %. The channel length increased by approximately 75 m and the sinuosity from 1.311 to 1.314. The extension of fluvial bars reduced by more than 83 %, while their number increased from 151 to 381. Field evidence of riverbed lowering, such as river terraces formed in the considered time span and exhumation of foundations of bridges and flood-walls, were also constantly detected. Due to these channel adjustments, the Calore River morphology changed from transitional to single-thread. These results were coherent with those reported in the pre-existing literature about channel adjustments experienced by many rivers during the twentieth century. They all were explainable with a reduction of the bedload transport; this latter, in turn, is completely in accordance with the environmental changes that affected the Calore River system in the considered period (i.e., damming and/or channelization of the main tributaries, reduction of liquid discharge due to water withdrawals and sediment mining from the riverbed).

Most part of the vast scientific literature dealing with channel adjustments focuses on the period between the second half of the twentieth century and nowadays, when most of the adjustments occurred and data availability is generally great. On the contrary, few studies were carried out on older adjustments, notwithstanding their analysis is fundamental to fully understand both more recent evolutionary trends and the role possibly played by human disturbances. The lack of studies on older adjustments is total for rivers located in southern Italy. The present study attempts to partly fill this gap. An analysis of the planform changes experienced by Tammaro R. between 1870 and 1955 was carried out by means of a detailed GIS-aided analysis of historical maps. The results were interpreted in the framework of the pre-existing geomorphological, geographical and socio-economic literature. This latter highlighted that the Tammaro R. basin in the studied period was scarcely inhabited and almost un-anthropized, especially in the first part of the studied period. Between 1870 and 1909, the river underwent a slight and quite inhomogeneous widening and moderate increase in fluvial bars, together with a slight straightening and shortening, but without substantial changes in channel morphology, which was single-thread. Between 1909 and 1955, the river experienced a homogeneous and marked widening, increase in sinuosity and lengthening, together with a strong increase in fluvial bars, and the channel morphology drastically changed from single-thread to transitional. This trend was opposite to that of most rivers in that period, possibly because of the scarce human impact on both the Tammaro R. and its basin.

A 1:18,000-scale geomorphological map of the Lower Calore River alluvial plain (Southern Italy) is here presented. The area strongly suffered the dramatic effects of a destructive flood on 15 October 2015. The presented Map was produced in a GIS using topographic maps dating from 1870, 1909, 1936 and 1955 and 1:10,000-scaled colour orthophotos from 1998. All the maps and aerial photos were georeferenced in the UTM33 WGS84 coordinate system. The detected landforms were manually digitized and checked in the field. A geodatabase containing attributes such as type, age and surface area of each landform was created and progressively updated. The areal and unconventional map legend was designed to provide maximum readability. In the alluvial plain, five orders of river terraces were recognized. They are separated by strongly reshaped, gently sloping, inactive fluvial scarps (FS), less than 1.5 m high. Former channels, now abandoned, were also mapped. The confluence migrated eastward/east-northeastward between 1870 and 1955, followed by a north-northwestward migration between 1955 and 1998. Finally, numerous riverbank failures were observed and mapped along the active FS. A secondary map showing the age of the alluvial plain was also produced and showed that most of the investigated alluvial plain formed between 1909 and 1936. The study also shows the results of channel adjustments experienced by the river in ∼130 years.

The aim of this study was the assessment, at basin scale, of the susceptibility to water-induced soil erosion processes (i.e. gully erosion and sheet/rill erosion) using geomorphological analysis, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and bivariate statistics. The study was carried out in a watershed located in Southern Italy. A detailed analysis of the pre-existing literature led to select lithology, land-use, slope angle and slope aspect as soil-erosion determining factors (DFs), as they are “non-redundant” and affect both the soil-forming processes that control soil erodibility and the erosive power of running waters. Water-produced erosional landforms, such as gullies and areas severely affected by sheet/rill erosion, were surveyed and mapped using classical techniques of geomorphological analysis. The GIS processing of the geomorphological data allowed calculating the areal density of these landforms in each DF class. Weighting values (Wi), corresponding to the susceptibility level of each DF class, were calculated using bivariate statistics. Finally, GIS overlay procedures of the thematic maps, previously reclassified on the basis of the calculated Wi, allowed to produce two Susceptibility Maps (i.e. Gully Erosion and Sheet and/or Rill Erosion Susceptibility Map). The soil-geomorphological coherence of the produced results has been checked and widely discussed in the framework of the pre-existing literature. Both the geomorphological coherence of the calculated Wi and the results of the validation procedure suggested a good reliability of the method, which is also relatively easy to apply and update.

The aim of this study is to assess of the distribution and map the geomorphological effects of soil erosion at the basin scale identifying newly-formed erosional landsurfaces (NeFELs), by means of an integration of Landsat ETM 7+ remotely sensed data and field-surveyed geomorphological data. The study was performed on a 228·6 km2-wide area, located in southern Italy. The study area was first characterized from a lithological, pedological, land-use and morpho-topographic point of view and thematic maps were created. Then, the georeferenced Landsat ETM 7+ satellite imagery was processed using the RSI ENVI 4.0 software. The processing consisted of contrast stretching, principal component analysis (PCA), decorrelation stretching and RGB false colour compositing. A field survey was conducted to characterize the features detected on the imagery. Particular attention was given to the NeFELs, which were located using a global positioning system (GPS). We then delimited the Regions of Interest (ROI) on the Landsat ETM 7+ imagery, i.e. polygons representing the ‘ground-truth’, discriminating the NeFELs from the other features occurring in the imagery. A simple statistical analysis was conducted on the digital number (DN) values of the pixels enclosed in the ROI of the NeFELs, with the aim to determine the spectral response pattern of such landsurfaces. The NeFELs were then classified in the entire image using a maximum likelihood classification algorithm. The results of the classification process were checked in the field. Finally, a spatial analysis was performed by converting the detected landsurfaces into vectorial format and importing them into the ESRI ArcViewGIS 9.0 software. Application of these procedures, together with the results of the field survey, highlighted that some ‘objects’ in the classified imagery, even if displaying the same spectral response of NeFELs, were not landsurfaces subject to intense soil erosion, thus confirming the strategic importance of the field-checking for the automatically produced data. During the production of the map of the NeFELs, which is the final result of the study, these ‘objects’ were eliminated by means of simple, geomorphologically-coherent intersection procedures in a geographic information system (GIS) environment. The overall surface of the NeFELs had an area of 22·9 km2, which was 10% of the total. The spatial analysis showed that the highest frequency of the NeFELs occurred on both south-facing and southwest-facing slopes, cut on clayey-marly deposits, on which fine-textured and carbonate-rich Inceptisols were present and displaying slope angle values ranging from 12° to 20°. The comparison of two satellite imageries of different periods highlighted that the NeFELs were most clearly evident immediately after summer tillage operations and not so evident before them, suggesting that these practices could have played an important role in inducing the erosional processes. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Please click here to download the map associated with this article. Soil erosion susceptibility mapping provides a classification of the land surface into zones each of which has a different likelihood, or risk, of experiencing specific soil erosion processes. Such maps are fundamental to land-use planning aimed at the conservation of soil resources. In this paper, 1:46,500 scale maps showing susceptibility to different soil erosion processes (sheet/rill erosion, gully erosion and landslide-induced mass erosion) are presented. The study was carried out in the 10.5 km2 Janare Torrent basin, located in Southern Italy. The basin was first characterized by lithology, morphology and land-use. Landslides, gullies and landsurfaces affected by intense sheet and/or rill erosion were then surveyed and mapped by integrating the analysis of aerial photos and topographic maps with field observations. Using ArcView GIS 3.2, the densities of each type of erosional landform in each lithological, slope, aspect an...

In this paper, two simple GIS-based methodologies have been used to assess the landslide susceptibility in a basin located in Southern Italy. The methodologies at issue, based on the spatial distribution of landslides and/or of causal factors, are bivariate statistics-based and expert-based, respectively. The spatial distribution of both the landslides and the causal factors has been investigated by integrating pre-existing and original data, which have been processed using ArcView GIS 3.2 software. The obtained results, consisting of landslide susceptibility maps have been compared and discussed. The bivariate statistics-based method has provided the most satisfying results. On the contrary, the expert-based method has provided a classification of the study area in terms of landslide susceptibility which does not completely fit with the surveyed spatial distribution of the landslides.

The Paleosol of Eboli is interbedded within an Early Pleistocene coarse alluvial succession, the Eboli Conglomerates, located in the Campanian Apennines (Southern Italy), infilling the morphostructural depression of the Sele River Plain. Quaternary climatic changes and related morphodynamic response were investigated using a multidisciplinary (geomorphological, sedimentological and pedological) approach. The alluvial sequence of the Eboli Conglomerates shows remarkable vertical changes, marked by clear erosional discontinuities that identify four stacked formations called, from the bottom, Fontana del Fico, Colle Mancuso, Castelluccia, and S. Anna formations. The clastic facies of these formations are mainly indicative of an alluvial fan environment, with most sediments emplaced by flooding of distributary streams. The Paleosol of Eboli is formed at the top of the Castelluccia formation. We investigated its morphological, physical, chemical, micromorphological, and mineralogical properties. Many discontinuities appear in the field due to various erosional events that are related to hillslope dynamics. Each of these events was followed by the emplacement of new and different colluvial deposits that were derived from upslope and were subsequently affected by pedogenesis. All the horizons of the Paleosol of Eboli have reddish and brown matrix colours, secondary carbonate, angular blocky structure, and clayey texture. On the basis of the field data and chemical and physical analysis, three different pedogenetic cycles can be distinguished in the Paleosol of Eboli. These cycles depict differing degrees of pedogenic expression depending on water regime and duration of pedogenesis. The micromorphology showed the presence of eluvial tongues, Fe dynamics (coatings, segregations), vertic features (optically anisotropic lines in the soil matrix), and pedorelicts. Kaolinite is the most abundant clay mineral, but vermiculite and illite are also present. The Fe minerals, especially the hematite/goethite ratio, have provided a new approach to understand the main paleoclimatic changes through the studied sequence. The overall pedogenetic scenario depicts a highly weathered environment (disordered kaolinite, Fe oxides, low Feo/Fed ratio, depletion zones), characterized by marked climatic seasonality (witnessed by vertic properties) and abundant rainfall (depletion zones). The general scenario is coherent with a highly weathered subtropical environment that probably occurred during MIS-25, based on age control. The widespread outcrop pattern, consistent stratigraphic position, thickness ranging from 1 to 5 m, and the uniformity of pedological features of the Paleosol of Eboli make it clearly recognizable in the field and allow us to consider the Paleosol of Eboli a reliable pedostratigraphic marker.

Riassunto La didattica ambientale costituisce un imprescindibile ambito di studio, indubbiamente rilevante sul piano educativo. Il contributo ne analizza la specificità epistemologica e curricolare, precisando in particolare i rapporti reciproci esistenti tra gli insegnamenti di scienze ambientali, educazione ambientale, didattica delle scienze ambientali e didattica dell’educazione ambientale. Ciò consente di evidenziare, in particolare, la peculiarità dell’educazione ambientale, disciplina tesa precipuamente a favorire, anche attraverso l’introduzione di opportune forme d’innovazione metodologica, non tanto l’acquisizione di conoscenze quanto lo sviluppo di comportamenti coerenti con la prospettiva dello sviluppo umano integrale. Abstract Environmental teaching represents an unavoidable study area, particularly relevant for educators. This paper analyzes its specific epistemological and curricular characteristics precisely stating the mutual relationships among the curricula of environmental sciences and its education, as well as the teaching of both environmental sciences and its education. more than a mere acquisition of knowledge, the last discipline aims at fostering, also by appropriate methodological innovations, the development of behaviours coherent with the perspective of a comprehensive human growth. Résumé La didactique environnementale constitue un domaine d’étude incontournable, indubitablement relevant du point de vue éducatif. Cette contribution vise à analyser la spécificité épistémologique et scolaire, en précisant particulièrement les rapports existants entre les enseignements des sciences environnementales, l’éducation environnementale, la didactique des sciences environnementales e la didactique de l’éducation environnementale. Cela nous consent la mise en valeur de la peculiarité de l’éducation environnementale, discipline qui a pour but essentiellement de favoriser, même par l’introduction des formes opportunes d’innovation méthodologique, plus que l’acquisition de connaissances, le développement des comportements cohérents avec la prospective du développement humain intégral.