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Numerous riverbeds and floodplains in the Western Mediterranean Area (WMA) have been affected by anthropogenic modifications during the last centuries. In recent decades, an increase in floods in the coastal WMA has been observed. Variations in the rainfall regime and anthropisation have influenced the relevant geomorphological processes. The coastal floodplains analysed include those in Italy, France, and Spain. Geomorphological and land use changes that occurred in the last two centuries were examined using historical and recent maps, historical data, and European big data since the 1800s for 65 basins, for which over 670 flood events and more than 1300 victims were identified. Anthropogenic activities have changed the patterns of floodplains. In most cases, narrowing of the riverbeds, especially in the lower river sections, has been observed. The riverbeds have also changed from braided- to single-channel morphologies. GIS analysis shows reductions in the coastal watercourse widths ranging from 10% to 95%, with an average of 55%. Other changes are related to the deviation in the watercourses, with trends that did not respect the natural river flow. In some cases, the watercourses were covered and have vanished from recent maps. This aspect has reduced or eliminated the perception of the risk not only for the residents but also for land planners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Debris flow is one of the most dangerous natural processes in mountain regions and it occur in a wide variety of environments throughout the world. In the Italian Alps, some tens of thousands of damaging debris flow and, in general, torrential floods associated to intense sediment transport in secondary catchments have been documented in the last 300 years. These have caused socio-economic damage, damage to anthropogenic structures or infrastructures and in many cases casualties. Often, in the same basins, the occurrence of debris-flow processes recurs many years later. Prediction can often be spatial and based on the magnitude of the largest known process, while the temporal forecast is the most uncertain. It is also possible to increase the resilience of the population and of the territory. The present study aims at investigating different levels of debris-flow hazard in urban areas on Alpine alluvial fans and proposes a strategy for debris-flow prevention based on historical research and on a simplified analytical approach, methods that also involve relatively low costs. For such analysis, Ischiator stream catchment (ca. 20 km2) and its alluvial fan (NW Italy) were selected. This area was partly affected by historical torrential flood associated to intense sediment transport and debris-flow processes. Present-day instability conditions along the slope and the stream network were detected and synthesized through surveys and aerial photo interpretation integrated by satellite images (period 1954–2021). An estimation of the potential amount of moving detritus, referred to as debris flow, was carried out regarding the June 1957 debris-flow event, based on the predictive models. The individual hazard index value was estimated based on different methods. The results indicate that 56% of the area is exposed to flood associated to intense sediment transport hazard, which fluctuates from high to very high levels; such results are supported by debris-flow historical records. Since today almost half of the settlement (Bagni di Vinadio) is located on potentially risk-exposed areas, the urban evolution policy adopted after the 1957 event failed to manage the risk connection to debris-flow activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dolphins were first formally considered as a 'pest' species in the Mediterranean Sea in the late 19th century as they frequently disrupted fishing activities. Numerous fishing organisations/syndicates requested permission to hunt dolphins and the killing of dolphins was allowed by a number of national laws. This paper provides an overview of the hunting of dolphins in Italy across 14 Italian Maritime Compartments, mainly from 1927-1937. It summarises governmental measures implemented, numbers of individuals killed and their monetary value in accordance with the bounty system; official records reveal over 7,200 dolphins (species not specified) killed during the 11-year period and approximately 400,000 Italian Liras (... 355,000 EUR in today's money) was paid out. In addition to the bounty, the meat was either consumed or sold, making dolphin hunting a profitable activity. The lack of information on species identity and the size of dolphin populations around the Italian coast at that time make it difficult to estimate the population level impact of 'bounty fishing', but it is possible that it had a significant impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lago Piccolo and Lago Grande di Monticchio lie in the collapsed caldera of the volcanic structure of Mt. Vulture (Basilicata, Italy). In over two centuries, a number of studies on their water and on their submerged and riparian vegetation, were carried out, demonstrating an interesting biodiversity. The entire lake area, which is impacted by strong tourist pressure, is part of the "Monte Vulture" Special Area of Conservation (SAC IT9210210). The aim of this paper is to review the literature studies on these lakes, in order to identify the more suitable limnological parameters to infer the history of the trophic status of the two lakes. For this reason, we assess the current ecological status of the two lakes on the basis of physical, chemical and biological analyses deriving from two recent surveys carried out in 2005-2007 and in 2015, and compare these data with sparse, but relevant, historical records, in order to assess how human impacts affected both these lakes and to understand the differences in their present trophic status. Because of its peculiar water chemistry, Lago Piccolo is resulted in good and stable ecological conditions. On the contrary, water transparency of Lago Grande came out very low in summer, while total phosphorus and nitrogen concentration are proved high, leading to the persistence of critical environmental conditions in this lake, with high algal biomass and durable algal blooms in late summer, dominated by cyanobacteria. Finally, in absence of standard protocols and seasonal samplings, the macrophyte maximum growing depth should be considered the more reliable indicator of trophic status among those available for these specific lakes, being relatively independent from sampling methods and seasonal pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Morphological and landscape features (broad, beautiful sandy beaches close to high and impressive mountains) make the Versilia area one of the most important tourist areas in Italy, located in north-western Tuscany and facing the Ligurian Sea. Nevertheless, this particular geographic configuration contributes to a high frequency of intense meteorological phenomena. This paper presents the most significant results of an investigation into historical events (floods and landslides) occurring in the last centuries in the Versilia River basin. The main purpose is to contribute to hydrogeological hazard assessment in the Apuan area as well as to collect useful data in order to make a catalog of disastrous events. The research confirms the vulnerability of the territory being studied (186 damaging events from 1328 to 2009), which was emphasized by the tragic hydrogeological catastrophe of June 19, 1996 (13 fatalities). High severity events can also be identified in 1636, 1774, 1846, 1885 and 1902, together with many less intense events, which nonetheless had significant consequences. The damaging events show both a tendency to recur in the same areas, as well as a significant rise in frequency during the last centuries. These, in turn, probably depend on concurring factors: increased number and reliability of information sources; increased attention to the damaging phenomena; expansion of the elements at risk; possible climate changes. In the Versilia River basin, the average frequency is 1 damaging event every 3.7years. An event similar to June 1996 should have a recurrence time of about 110years. Moreover, the data forms the basis for a preliminary, but significant, classification of these identified events. This classification is based on event severity, deduced or estimated from the information gathered. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: The probability distribution of the annual maximum peak flows on the River Tiber at the town of Rome (Ripetta) can be evaluated using the information available since the XV century. In this paper the probability distribution of two series of annual peak flows maxima observed at the Ripetta gauge is analysed: the systematic series, including all the data observed since the beginning of the systematic stage record in 1782, and the censored series of the exceptional floods that inundated the town of Rome, starting from the XV century. In order to find a criterion for choosing the “optimum” distribution law for the high return period quantiles, an index that takes into account both the accuracy and the uncertainty of the quantiles estimation is proposed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

1. Changes in otter Lutra lutra distribution in Italy were examined by analysing geographical, historical and survey data. 2. As in other European countries, otters declined sharply in Italy during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Between 1985 and 2004 the species became extinct, except for some reintroductions, in northern and most of central Italy while the species appears to have substantially recovered in its southern range. This recovery of the otter population is apparently not due to increased research effort, but reflects a real expansion of range. 3. Differences in the degree of range reduction during the second half of the 20th century and in the availability of suitable habitats are probably the major factors that have determined the two opposite trends shown by otter populations in the last 20 years. 4. Better knowledge of otter status and distribution is needed for effective conservation management. We suggest that a national survey of the Italian otter population that employs genetic approaches should represent a first step of the national action plan for otter conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Aeolian Islands, located in the south Tyrrhenian Sea to the west of Calabria and to the north of Sicily, constitute the Aeolian Volcanic Arc, characterized by a relevant volcanic activity with an established tsunamigenic potential. According to the documentary sources that are available for the Aeolian tsunamis, and that cover unfortunately only about the last 100 years, Stromboli is responsible for the majority of the events. Some cases are also known to have occurred at the islands of Salina and Vulcano. In terms of intensities, the most destructive events are those originated by the Stromboli volcano, reported to have produced severe destruction to boats and houses, and to have even caused injuries and fatalities. In this work, we focus on the historical events, and discard the paleotsunami occurrences that were probably associated with the ascertained flank collapses of the volcanic cones. We also neglect the recent destructive tsunamis of 30 December 2002, which were caused by a series of mass failures at the Sciara del Fuoco, since observations and analyses are of such an amount that deserve to be illustrated in devoted papers. The bulk of the present research consisted in collecting all the available data on the historical cases (the first in order of time is the July 1916 Stromboli tsunami) with the purpose of casting more light on their generation mechanism and on their effects, and consequently of contributing to the studies on assessment of tsunami hazard and risk in the Aeolian Islands and in the southern Tyrrhenian sea. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Despite the long-run strong negative association between economic development and mortality, their short-run relationship remains controversial. In the present work, we study co-movement between mortality growth (overall, gender- and cause-specific) and economic fluctuations in Italy over the period 1862-2013. To this aim, we use Johansen (Econometrica 59:1551-1580, 1991) procedure to jointly estimate the short- and long-run dynamics of the two variables, avoiding omitted variable bias in the cyclical co-movement extraction or spurious association attributable to trends. We also take into account possible asymmetric responses of mortality growth to shocks in GDP. We find that an increase of 1% in real GDP per capita induces a reduction in mortality rate of 0.27% for total population. Moreover, we observe that business cycle fluctuations do not affect mortality in the pre-wars era, where only the long run decreases matters driven by reduction in infections and accidents mortality. On the contrary, in the post-wars period, expansive phases of business cycle are associated with reduction in mortality growth and periods of recession generate an ever-deeper decrease. However, in this period, mortality for cancer is procyclical and significantly increasing in expansion: this reinforces the debate for controlling environmental factors.