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The present paper illustrates the results of an integrated study of a large landslide located on the southern slope of Mount la Civita (Molise, Southern Apennine), an E-W elongated, SSE dipping and 890-m-high monocline carbonate ridge. The upper part of the slope affected by the landslide is largely controlled by strata attitude while its basal part is marked by a strike-slip fault causing the tectonic juxtaposition of the carbonate successions against predominantly clayey flysch units. An integrated study, including geological, geomorphological and geotechnical investigations, was carried out to determine the features of the landslide and to plan further investigation and monitoring. In particular, from 2002 to 2004, Differential Global Positioning System monitoring and core drillings, coupled with inclinometer measurements, were carried out to determine the landslide's kinematics, extent, depth to the surface of rupture and rates of movement. Inclinometer data revealed the presence of the rupture surface at a depth of about 20 m. DGPS monitoring allowed rates of movement up to several tens of centimetres per year to be recorded. The nearby village of Civitanova del Sannio can still be considered at risk due to the landslide, as recent remedial works, consisting mainly of very shallow re-shaping of the slope by blasting and partial filling of trenches, did not succeed in stopping its movement. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.

In order to assess the effects of possible future sea-level rise in the Sele plain, the lowlands prone to inundation and the rate of coastal erosion in the years 2050 and 2100 have been discussed and some conclusions are here proposed. The sea level at these two dates was calculated as the combination of three components: response of Italian coastal zones to the past deglaciation, variations in ocean volume due to the global warming and vertical land movements. The morpho-stratigraphical data, chronologically supported by C-14 and by archeo-tephro-stratigraphical dating, have allowed the identification of paleo-sea levels of the upper Pleistocene and Holocene (Amato et al. 2011). Such paleo-sea levels compared with those of the tectonically stable areas (Lambeck et al. 2011), permitted the detection of the different vertical land movements in the study area. In particular, in the SE sector of the coastal plain, the Holocene paleo-sea levels are slightly higher (ca. 1-2 m). These values could be considered due to a gentle uplift of the area during Holocene times (0.22 mm/year). In the central sector of the plain, near the Sele river mouth and in the NW sector, between the Sele and Tusciano river mouths, the altitude of the Late Quaternary coastal and lagoonal deposits are slightly lower (ca. 2-3 m). These values could be related to a gentle subsidence of the area during the Holocene (0.4 mm/year). The sea level rise of 5.9 mm/year (IPCC 2007) and 14 mm/year (Rahmstorf 2007) was considered to represent the maximum trends in the ocean volume variation at global scale. The third component, the glacio-hydro-isostasy, was represented by the value of 0.44 mm/year identified by Lambeck et al. (2011) at the Sele plain. The sum of these three components allowed to identify three sea-level scenarios slightly different for the northern and the southern sector of Sele plain, with values ranging from 357 to 1,526 mm and from 307 to 1,424 mm, respectively. For each scenario a simple approach was used, mainly based on the topographic elevation analysis of study area, applied to identify the extension of possible areas of inundation. It corresponds to a minimum value of about 0.42 km(2) for the 2050 AD and a maximum value of 7.6 km(2) for the 2100. Furthermore, according to the methodology proposed by Davidson-Arnott (2005), also the beach erosion was evaluated. The computations showed a potential mean landward retreat of the shoreline ranging from 19 to 93 m.

The travertines on which the ancient town of Paestum was built about 2,600 years ago, have been investigated to restore the original sedimentary environment of these freshwater limestones formed during the Late Pleistocene–Holocene in the southern sector of the Sele River plain. For this purpose, the few present outcrops of travertine have been analysed from a palaeoenvironmental point of view, integrating the morphology and the sedimentology of the substrate with the information on the textural patterns of the blocks forming the town walls, some of which have a clear similarity with the outcropping substrate. The Paestum travertines can be distinguished into two sedimentary units: the lower Paestum travertines (LPT) which formed between Late Pleistocene (75,000 years BP) and the Early Holocene, and the upper Paestum travertines (UPT) formed during Late Roman to Medieval times. The UPT reached various meters of thickness within the southern and western part of the town, obstructing completely its western entrance, Porta Marina, with its flanking side towers, and were largely removed during archaeological excavations that started in the 1930s. A possible mechanism for this fossilization calls for a process of progressive upward growth of an incrustation barrier within the door, while the calcariferous waters were flowing out from the town at increasing heights.

The Sele river plain is located along the western Tyrrhenian margin of the southern Apennine Chain and is confined seaward by a straight sandy coast formed during the Last Interglacial and the Holocene. The coastal plain is characterised by beach-dune ridges which interfinger landwards with lagoon and fluvio-palustrine deposits. This belt, which progressively grew up, represents the evolution of a barrier-lagoon system alternatively shifting landwards and seawards. The knowledge on the Holocene evolution of the Sele river coastal plain, along the coast of the Poseidonia-Paestum archaeological area, was improved by the drilling of two new cores and the collection of several archaeo-tephro-stratigraphic data. The area experienced the Holocene marine transgression which cut high cliffs in the travertine deposits. During the second half of the Holocene, the shoreline shifted seawards and a lagoon-beach bar system (Fossa Lupata-Laura) formed. The archaeological remains (VI cent. B.C.) and the Agnano Monte Spina tephra layer (4.1 ky BP) constrain chronologically this morpho-sedimentary system. After the VI cent. B.C., and mostly after the deposition of the 79 A.D. tephra layer, the shoreline shifted seawards and an additional beach ridge formed, while the flat area at the back (Fossa Lupata) was rapidly aggraded and dried up.

An integrated geomorphological, geological-structural and stratigraphic approach was applied to the Sessano intra-montane basin (Molise, Central-Southern Apennines) to understand the Quaternary environmental and sedimentary evolution of the basin and the surrounding areas. The morpho-evolutionary and sedimentary changes were mainly controlled by tectonics and strongly influenced by the huge amount of volcaniclastic input from the Roccamonfina volcano (located ca. 50km to the south-west) as well as by climatic changes. Chronological constraints, supported by Ar/Ar ages of tephra layers, archaeo-tephro-stratigraphy and pollen analysis, permit identification of the main phases of the geological-geomorphologic evolution of the Sessano basin from the Middle Pleistocene onwards. The sedimentation within the basin was controlled by NE-SW extensional tectonics and occurred from the end of Oxygen Isotope Stage (OIS) 15 to the beginning of OIS 11 allowing the deposition of ca. 85m of fluvial to lacustrine sediments, mainly made up of reworked volcaniclastic material. The first phase of sedimentation was lacustrine, while an important sedimentary change from lacustrine to fluvial-marshy environment occurred during OIS 14. After this phase, the variable input of volcaniclastic material from the Roccamonfina volcano together with climatic influences caused repeated changes from palustrine to fluvial sedimentation, and the formation of various palaeosols present mainly in the upper portion of the infill. Towards the end of OIS 11, NNW-SSE extensional tectonics caused the tilting of the fill succession and the drying up of the basin. The fill succession was then affected by fluvial erosion and denudation that generated an erosion surface nowadays hanging at 700-720m asl. This surface can be related to the limbs of a palaeo-surface at about 600m asl present in the adjacent Carpino-Le Piane intra-montane basin and referred to a fourth order, Tyrrhenian-ward oriented palaeo-landscape. This palaeo-landscape can be dated to ca. 350-300ky and, therefore, represents an important morpho-chronological stage. It provides a robust maximum and minimum age framework for reconstructing the geological and geomorphological evolution of the study area and, in general, of the Molise Apennines including the Boiano, Carpino-Le Piane and Sessano intra-montane basins. In particular, the morpho-chronological data from the Sessano basin allow us to date more precisely the main tectonic phases that occurred during the Middle Pleistocene in this sector of the Apennine chain. Finally, the multi-proxy data derived from the Sessano basin can be compared and integrated with those referring to other proximal intra-montane basins in order to improve our knowledge on the relationships between tectonics, volcanism and climate and the stratigraphic-sedimentary features, geomorphologic evolution and palaeoenvironmental changes that characterized the Central-Southern Apennines during Middle Pleistocene. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.

This paper shows an interesting case of coastal landscape reconstruction by using innovative marine robotic instrumentation, applied to an archaeological key-site in the Campi Flegrei (Italy), one of the more inhabited areas in the Mediterranean during the Roman period. This active volcanic area is world famous for the ancient coastal cities of Baiae, Puteoli, and Misenum, places of military and commercial excellence. The multidisciplinary study of the submerged Roman harbour at Nisida Island was aimed at reconstructing the natural and anthropogenic underwater landscape by elaborating a multiscale dataset. The integrated marine surveys were carried out by an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) foreseeing the simultaneous use of geophysical and photogrammetric sensors according to the modern philosophy of multi-modal mapping. All instrumental measurements were validated by on-site measurements performed by specialised scuba divers. The multiscale analysis of the sensing data allowed a precise reconstruction of the coastal morpho-evolutive trend and the relative sea level variation in the last 2000 years by means of a new type of archaeological sea-level marker here proposed for the first time. Furthermore, it provided a detailed multidimensional documentation of the underwater cultural heritage and a useful tool for evaluating the conservation state of archaeological submerged structures.

In this paper, we present the results of a climatic analysis based on 30-year (1971-2000) averages of precipitation and air temperature monthly data from 115 air temperature and precipitation stations of the National Meteorological Office and National Hydraulic Resources Institute of the Dominican Republic. The performed analysis provides a synthesis of the climate of the Dominican Republic, consistent with its orography and the atmospheric dynamics typical for the Caribbean region. According to the analysis, 54% of the Dominican territory can be classified as dry or semi-dry, and hence quite vulnerable to extensive or intensive land use practices, especially if inappropriate, with important implications in terms of water supplies, both for human consumption and for crop irrigation. This highlights the need to adopt appropriate policies to reduce vulnerability to climate change which, according to predictions, will lead to an increase in aridity.

This work summarizes the results of a geomorphological and bivariate statistical approach to gully erosion susceptibility mapping in the Turbolo stream catchment (northern Calabria, Italy). An inventory map of gully erosion landforms of the area has been obtained by detailed field survey and air photograph interpretation. Lithology, land use, slope, aspect, plan curvature, stream power index, topographical wetness index and length-slope factor were assumed as gully erosion predisposing factors. In order to estimate and validate gully erosion susceptibility, the mapped gully areas were divided in two groups using a random partitions strategy. One group (training set) was used to prepare the susceptibility map, using a bivariate statistical analysis (Information Value method) in GIS environment, while the second group (validation set) to validate the susceptibility map, using the success and prediction rate curves. The validation results showed satisfactory agreement between the susceptibility map and the existing data on gully areas locations; therefore, over 88% of the gullies of the validation set are correctly classified falling in high and very high susceptibility areas. The susceptibility map, produced using a methodology that is easy to apply and to update, represents a useful tool for sustainable planning, conservation and protection of land from gully processes. Therefore, this methodology can be used to assess gully erosion susceptibility in other areas of Calabria, as well as in other regions, especially in the Mediterranean area, that have similar morphoclimatic features and sensitivity to concentrated erosion.

In the period between the end of October and the beginning of November 2007, the Dominican Republic was hit by the tropical storm Noel, then turned into hurricane in its movement toward the Californian coasts. The passage of Noel was accompanied by huge precipitation especially in the south-western part of the country. In some areas, the rainfall registered in 6 days exceeded 700 mm, i.e., more than two-thirds of the mean annual precipitation. The return periods calculated for this rainfall event vary greatly from region to region: while they locally reach 200 years, such as in San Jose de Ocoa (50 km west of Santo Domingo), in other areas, as for instance in the territory of the capital Santo Domingo, return periods do not exceed 20 years. The tropical storm caused huge damage both in terms of human victims and economic losses, related to diffused inundations and landslide phenomena, which may be attributed only partially to the exceptionality of the event. As a matter of fact, in many regions, the inadequate answer of the territory—widely characterized by serious problems of land degradation and an almost complete lack of territorial planning—appears to be the major responsible for the occurred negative effects. The impact assessment, based on the calculation of an Impact Index, confirms this statement.

Multi-temporal GIS analysis of topographic maps and aerial photographs along with topographic and geomorphological surveys are used to assess evolutionary trends and key control factors of channel adjustments for five major rivers in southern Italy (the Trigno, Biferno, Volturno, Sinni and Crati rivers) to support assessment of channel recovery and river restoration. Three distinct phases of channel adjustment are identified over the past 150 years primarily driven by human disturbances. Firstly, slight channel widening dominated from the last decades of the nineteenth century to the 1950s. Secondly, from the 1950s to the end of the 1990s, altered sediment fluxes induced by in-channel mining and channel works brought about moderate to very intense incision (up to 6–7 m) accompanied by strong channel narrowing (up to 96%) and changes in channel configuration from multi-threaded to single-threaded patterns. Thirdly, the period from around 2000 to 2015 has been characterized by channel stabilization and local widening. Evolutionary trajectories of the rivers studied are quite similar to those reconstructed for other Italian rivers, particularly regarding the second phase of channel adjustments and ongoing transitions towards channel recovery in some reaches. Analyses of river dynamics, recovery potential and connectivity with sediment sources of the study reaches, framed in their catchment context, can be used as part of a wider interdisciplinary approach that views effective river restoration alongside sustainable and risk-reduced river management.

The late Quaternary evolution of the Sele River coastal plain (Salerno Gulf, southern Italy) was investigated through integrated stratigraphical, chronological and palaeoecological analyses. The main environmental changes were ascribed to glacio-eustatic variations leading to rapid ingressions alternating with coastal progradations. The marked marine ingression of MIS 5.5 is testified by palaeoridges now cropping out 4 km inland at 11/13 m a.s.l. (Gromola palaeoridge). The eustatic minimum of MIS 2 is testified by lower shoreface deposits in the offshore core record and in the seismic profiles at 120/130 m below sea level. This prolonged sea-level fall was interrupted by at least three rapid sea-level rises, probably related to MIS 5.3, 5.1 and 3. The evidence of the first two sea level rises are represented by shoreface deposits in the inland S1 core (30 m thick, 3 m a.s.l., 1.5 km inland). The highstand of MIS 3 was identified by seismic profiles as onlapping marine deposits. The shore deposits at 100 m b.s.l were tentatively attributed to the lowstand of MIS 4. After the lowstand of MIS 2, the Sele Plain was newly flooded due to the rapid Post Glacial sea-level rise. This ingression caused the inland migration of a barrier-lagoon system and stopped at approximately 5.5 ky BP. From that moment the shoreline started prograding up to the present position probably due to the decrease in the sea-level rise rates and to the volcaniclastic supplies from the Neapolitan volcanoes, especially from the AD 79 Vesuvius eruption, also recorded in the subbottom chirp profiles.

The long-term denudation rate has been evaluated within an actively deforming area (the Southern Apennines Chain), using both geomorphological and GIS-aided analysis of a 2738 km 2 representative sample area. The rock volume contained between a reconstructed palaeotopography and the present topography of the study area has been calculated. Palaeotopography has been reconstructed on the basis of the relics of an irregular surface, whose tentative age is 0.8–0.6 Ma, and also includes remnants of a more ancient, more suspended and badly preserved palaeosurface. To represent the modern topography, a certified DTM of Italy, with grid 230×230 m 2 , was adopted. The calculated rock volume eroded since the beginning of the dissection of the palaeosurface is 478 km 3 , which implies an average erosional downwearing of 175 m. However, downwearing is not uniformly distributed over the area, as it is concentrated along valleys. In particular, the same major valley trunks that already existed at the beginning of the Middle Pleistocene, show downcutting amounting to 400 m and more, while the amount of erosion on the divide areas is of the order of a few tens of metres. The resulting mean denudation rate falls between 0.22 and 0.30 mm/a.

An integrated stratigraphical approach was applied to the Sessano sedimentary succession (Molise), investigated through an 80-m core and an 11-m trench section. The lithostratigraphical study allowed reconstruction of the palaeoenvironmental conditions during the existence of a palaeo-marsh. Based on tephrostratigraphical analysis, the significant volcanoclastic inputs recorded along the Sessano succession were correlated to the explosive activity of the nearby Roccamonfina volcano and in particular to the high-K series (HKS) period of activity, lasted from 546 to 364 ka. The 40 Ar/ 39 Ar age of 437.9 ± 1.9 ka obtained at the base of the trench section, which stratigraphically overlaps the core succession, confirms the tephrostratigraphical model and indicates that the marsh dried up during the glacial phase of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 12. On this basis, the glacial–interglacial cycle recognised in the core through pollen analysis was ascribed to MIS 14 and 13, while the interglacial phase identified at the core base was tentatively ascribed to MIS 15. The duration of the marshy phase was estimated between 130 and 150 ka. The floral composition of the pollen spectra shows a more modern character with respect to coeval pollen records from Campania, confirming that the heterochronous disappearance of the last subtropical elements from Italy had a latitudinal character.

In this paper a Coastal Vulnerability Assessment method (CVA) was compared with the well-established CVI method in order to obtain validation data and discuss the different results. The structure of the proposed method relies upon a key parameter, known as impact index Ii, which accounts for wave climate, bathymetry and sediment data and depends on the wave run-up height, the seasonal and long-term erosion, and the efficiency of coastal protection structures. The comparison between this CVA and the existing CVI method was done on a test site already examined. The calculation of the different contributions of each method was transformed in appropriate vulnerability scores in order to examine and discuss the different results.

This paper presents a new method for coastal vulnerability assessment (CVA), which relies upon three indicators: run-up distance (as a measurement of coastal inundation), beach retreat (as a measurement of potential erosion), and beach erosion rate (obtained through the shoreline positions in different periods). The coastal vulnerability analysis of Sele Coastal Plain to storm impacts is examined along a number of beach profiles realized between 2008 and 2009. This particular study area has been selected due to its low-lying topography and high erosion propensity. Results are given in terms of an impact index, performed by combining the response due to coastal inundation, storm erosion, and beach erosion rate. This analysis is implemented on the basis of morphosedimentary characteristics of the beach, wave climate evaluation, and examination of multitemporal aerial photographs and topographic maps. The analysis of the final results evidences different coastal responses as a function of the beach width and slope, which in turn depend on the local anthropization level. The comparison of this method with a Coastal Vulnerability Index method evidences the better attitude of CVA index to take into account the different beach features to explain the experienced damages in specific stretches of the coastline considered.

Soil erosion by water is the main cause of soil degradation in large areas of the Mediterranean belt. Soil erosion determines loss of surface horizon, which is rich in organic matter. The content of soil organic matter (SOM) is a key property for evaluating soil erosion and/or soil preservation and quality. Conventional methods to estimate quantitatively SOM content, based on conventional laboratory analyses, are costly and time consuming. An alternative approach to ascertain SOM content is based on the use of soil spectral reflectance, which has the advantage to be rapid, non-destructive and cost effective. In this study we focused on: (i) using of the laboratory-based, proximally sensed in the visible–near-infrared (Vis–NIR, 400–2500 nm) spectral range to predict SOM content in the study area; (ii) combining soil spectroscopy and geostatistics for mapping SOM content; (iii) mapping zones affected by water erosion processes in the study area; and (iv) analyzing the relationship among soil erosion, SOM and soil spectral data. Areas affected by water erosion processes (sheet wash and/or rill and gully erosions) in the study area were detected through air-photo interpretation and field surveys. Topsoil samples from 215 locations in different soil types and erosion conditions were collected and each sample was air-dried and sieved at 2 mm and then split into two sub-samples: one was used for spectral measurements, while the other was analyzed to determine SOM content. Analysis of spectral curve showed that topsoil samples were spectrally separable on the basis of SOM content and of their erosion severity. Partial least squared regression (PLSR) analysis was applied to establish the relationships between spectral reflectance and SOM content. PLSR was performed on the calibration set including 161 of the 215 available samples, while 54 samples were used as validation set. The optimum number of factors to retain in the calibration model was determined by cross validation. The models were independently validated using the 54 validation soil samples. The results were satisfactory with high adjusted coefficient of determination (Radj2 = 0.84) and with a value of residual predictive deviation (RPD) more than 2.4. The results of this work suggest that laboratory reflectance spectroscopy in the Vis–NIR range coupled with a geostatistical analysis can be used as tools for predicting spectrally and mapping SOM. The relationship between water erosion processes and the spatial distribution of SOM, showed that: (i) zones with low content of SOM are affected by water erosion processes and (ii) water erosion affects more than 21% of the study area.

A 1:28,000 scale geomorphological map of the central sector of the Matese Mountains (Southern Italy) is presented in this paper. Geomorphological investigation by means of remote sensing, cartographic analysis and field surveys allowed the identification of the main geomorphic processes and to map the related landforms which are both of monogenetic and polygenetic origin. Most of them are erosional landforms generated by the action of periglacial, glacial and karst processes which often occur under the control of the geological structure. Glacial relics and polygenetic landforms of glaciokarst and fluviokarst origin provide good evidence of the strong influence of variable climatic conditions on landform genesis during the Quaternary. They also highlight the influence of extensive tectonics during the Quaternary which caused progressive uplift, fragmentation and disarticulation of the developing mountainous landscape and its consequent polycyclic evolution. The map illustrates the geomorphologic peculiarities of the Mediterranean mountain landscape that typically characterizes the Apennine chain, and contributes to the understanding of its tectonic evolution and the influence of climate and climatic changes on landscape evolution. It further provides a basic map for land planning policy including the exploitation of the geological heritage and the development of sustainable mountain tourism and geo-tourism. © 2013 Copyright Francesca Filocamo.

As in other alluvial coastal plains in Italy, the Holocene evolution of the Sele River coastal plain was strongly controlled by the events occurring after the Last Glacial Maximum (ca. 19 ky) when, because of progressive sea-level rise, marine transgression affected the outer portion of the present plain. From the Middle Holocene (ca 5.0–6.0 ky BP), the decrease in the sea-level rise led to coastal progradation testified by the building and the seaward migration of a barrier-lagoon system formed by the composite Sterpina–Laura beach-dune ridge system and the back-ridge flat area behind it, characterised by lagoonal to marsh environments. The present paper deals with the reconstruction of the coastal evolution focusing on the last 3,000 years. Geomorphological and geoarchaeological data were used to constrain the evolution of the area in remote times, while the analysis and comparison of historical and recent topographic maps, orthophotographs and aerial photographs allowed to highlight the shoreline trends in recent centuries. The coastline changes that occurred along the Sele River coastal plain during the last 3,000 years highlight two main evolutionary trends in time: firstly a coastal progradation and then a coastal retreatment which has recently been followed by a phase of substantial coastline stability. The coastal progradation (up to 500 m ca.) was favoured by the increased amounts of fluvial sediments delivered to the Sele coast because of the increase in agricultural activity and of periods of climate deterioration (the last being the Little Ice Age). During the last 150 years the Sele coast has been affected by prevailing erosion. From 1870 to 1984 the shoreline progressively retreated, reaching the highest erosion rates around the main river mouths. This shoreline retreatment can mainly be related to human activities (land reclamation, dam building, urbanisation) that reduced the quantity of sediment delivered to the coast. Due to this recent shoreline retreatment, even the historical dune system was locally affected by erosion too. Since 1984 the shoreline has been fairly stable while the Sele mouth zone has experienced erosion.

A basin-scale, integrated approach, including sedimentological, geomorphological and soil data, enables the reliable reconstruction of the infilling history of the southern Apenninic foredeep, with its subsequent inclusion in the wedge-top of the foreland basin system. An example is shown from the Molise-Apulian Apennines (Southern Italy), between Trigno and Fortore rivers, where the Pleistocene tectono-sedimentary evolution of the basin is framed into a sequence-stratigraphic scheme. Specifically, within the traditional subdivision into Quaternary marine (Qm) and Quaternary continental (Qc) depositional cycles, five third-order depositional sequences (Qm1, Qm2, Qc1, Qc2 and Qc3) are identified based upon recognition of four major stratigraphic discontinuities. The lower sequence boundaries are represented by angular unconformities or abrupt facies shifts, and are generally associated with distinctive pedological and geomorphological features. Three paleosols, observed at top of depositional sequences Qm2, Qc1 and Qc2, represent pedostratigraphic markers that can be tracked basinwide. The geomorphological response to major tectono-sedimentary events is marked by a series of paleosurfaces with erosional, depositional and complex characteristics. Detailed investigation of the relationships between stratigraphic architecture and development of unconformities, paleosols and paleosurfaces suggests that the four sequence boundaries were formed in response to four geomorphological phases/tectonic events which affected the basin during the Quaternary. The first three tectonic events (Lower-Middle Pleistocene), marking the lower boundaries of sequences Qm2, Qc1 and Qc2, respectively, are interpreted to be related to the tectonic regime that characterized the last phase of thrusting recorded in the Southern Apennines. In contrast, sequence Qc3 does not display evidence of thrust tectonics, and accumulated as a result of a phase of regional uplift starting with the Middle Pleistocene.

Integrated sedimentological and micropalaeontological analyses of Montesecco Clays cropping out along the Molise Apennines foothills allow to reconstruct the depositional setting and major palaeoenvironmental changes within the Molise Periadriatic Basin (Apenninic foredeep) during the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. Sedimentological and palaeocological data from four reference stratigraphic sections document an overall shallowing-upward tendency within Montesecco Clays, which is also confirmed by compositional data analysis of microfaunal assemblages. Lower Montesecco Clays (Ururi and Trigno sections) accumulated from the middle epibathyal/bathyal to lower circalittoral zone, while upper Montesecco Clays (Guglionesi and Colle Favaro-Petacciato sections) contain a microfauna indicative of an outer circalittoral to infralittoral environment. As documented by previous subsurface data, the palaeoecological analysis suggests increasing depths in the Molise Periadriatic Basin from NW to SE.

Alberico, I.; Amato, V.; Aucelli, P.P.C.; D'Argenio, B.; Di Paola, G.; and Pappone, G., 2012. Historical shoreline change of the Se le Plain (southern Italy): the 1870-2009 time window. Journal of Coastal Research, 28(6), 1638-1647. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. In the Mediterranean, the coastal population was estimated at 146 million in 1990 and the urban coastal population alone is projected to rise to 176 million by 2025, with an addition of 350 million of tourists per year. In coastal zones, forecasting shoreline location and changes in time is a basic tool for decisional making regarding land management and future planning. Historical maps, aerial photography, topographic maps and a beach survey were used as data sources to detect the shorelines of the Sele Plain coastline between the towns of Salerno and Agropoli (southern Italy) and define its change from 1870 to 2009. By using the potential of ArcGIS release 8.3 software and its extension digital shoreline analysis system, we followed two main stages. The first required identification of the shorelines, reducing to a minimum the errors associated to the suitability of source material, distortion of the photographs, residuals in georeferencing, and seasonal shoreline variation. The second was to define the shoreline variations along 170 transects spaced every 200 m. This systematic analysis showed that in the Sele River plain the highest rates of erosion, generally localized at river mouths (Picentino River, mean value = 0.4 m/y; Sele River, mean value = 1.3 m/y), have decreased in the last 20 years, revealing that the beach system is acquiring new coastal stability.

International audience; The sedimentary basins of the central and southern Apennines are suitable to the conservation of continental palaeoenvi-ronmental archives. The study of those deposits traces the evolution of vegetation and climates in Italy during the Quaternary, at regional and micro-regional scales. Thus, the Boiano Basin (Molise, Italy) recorded an important lacustrine and fluvio-palustrine sedimentation since the Middle Pleistocene. According to the tephrostratigraphy, which forms the chronological framework of the sequence, the basal deposits are assumed to be older than 440 ka. Three major phases of sedimentation were recognized by means of lithology. Palynology enabled to detail the evolution of the environments synchronous to those sedimentary fillings between the oxygen isotopic stages 13 and 2. The environment dynamics confirms the progressive reduction of the deciduous forest diversity during the Middle Pleistocene, and characteristics of the Boiano basin are enlightened. Quercus, omnipresent element during the Middle Pleistocene of southern Italy, is quite scarce along the whole sequence and systematically associated with Fagus during the interglacial phases. The biotope, characterized by a continuous, atmospheric or edaphic, humidity favoured the persistence of hygro-philous taxa. In fact, Carya is present until the oxygen isotopic stage 9, which represents its latest record in Western Europe. Thus, the Boiano basin could have constituted an ecological refuge for the arboreal flora of the Middle Pleistocene. The physiography of the basin certainly softened the effects of climatic deterioration during glacial episodes.; Les bassins sédimentaires des Apennins centraux et méridionaux sont propices à la conservation des archives paléoenvi-ronnementales continentales. L'étude palynologique de ces dépôts retrace l'évolution de la végétation et des climats en Italie au Quaternaire, tant à l'échelle régionale que micro-régionale. A ce titre, le bassin de Boiano (Molise, Italie) a enregistré une importante sédimentation lacustre et fluvio-palustre depuis le Pléistocène moyen. Plusieurs niveaux de téphras intercalés dans les dépôts posent le cadre chronologique de la séquence, dont la base est antérieure à 440 ka. Cette étude détaille l'évolution des environnements dans le bassin entre les stades isotopiques de l'oxygène 13 et 2. Les dynamiques environnementales confirment l'appauvrissement graduel des forêts caducifoliées au Pléistocène moyen et décrivent plusieurs spécificités propres au bassin de Boiano. Quercus, élément omniprésent au Pléistocène moyen en Italie méridionale, est ici peu représenté et systématiquement associé à Fagus durant les interglaciaires. Le milieu, caractérisé par une humidité permanente, climatique ou édaphique, a favorisé la persistance de taxons hygrophiles. Ainsi, Carya est présent jusqu'au stade isotopique de l'oxygène 9, constituant son enregistrement le plus tardif en Europe occidentale. Le bassin de Boiano a donc pu constituer un refuge écologique pour la flore arborée du Pléistocène moyen. La physiographie du bassin atténuait certainement l'ampleur des dégradations climatiques lors des épisodes glaciaires.

Soil erosion is one of most widespread process of degradation. The erodibility of a soil is a measure of its susceptibility to erosion and depends on many soil properties. Soil erodibility factor varies greatly over space and is commonly estimated using the revised universal soil loss equation. Neglecting information about estimation uncertainty may lead to improper decision-making. One geostatistical approach to spatial analysis is sequential Gaussian simulation, which draws alternative, equally probable, joint realizations of a regionalised variable. Differences between the realizations provide a measure of spatial uncertainty and allow us to carry out an error analysis. The objective of this paper was to assess the model output error of soil erodibility resulting from the uncertainties in the input attributes (texture and organic matter). The study area covers about 30 km2 (Calabria, southern Italy). Topsoil samples were collected at 175 locations within the study area in 2006 and the main chemical and physical soil properties were determined. As soil textural size fractions are compositional data, the additive-logratio (alr) transformation was used to remove the non-negativity and constant-sum constraints on compositional variables. A Monte Carlo analysis was performed, which consisted of drawing a large number (500) of identically distributed input attributes from the multivariable joint probability distribution function. We incorporated spatial cross-correlation information through joint sequential Gaussian simulation, because model inputs were spatially correlated. The erodibility model was then estimated for each set of the 500 joint realisations of the input variables and the ensemble of the model outputs was used to infer the erodibility probability distribution function. This approach has also allowed for delineating the areas characterised by greater uncertainty and then to suggest efficient supplementary sampling strategies for further improving the precision of K value predictions.

DI PAOLA, G., IGLESIAS, J., RODRIGUEZ, G., BENASSAI, G., AUCELLI, P and PAPPONE, G., 2011. Estimating Coastal Vulnerability in a Meso-Tidal Beach by Means of Quantitative and Semi-Quantitative Methodologies. In: Micallef, A. (ed.), MCRR3-2010 Conference Proceedings, Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 61, pp. 303–308. Grosseto, Tuscany, Italy, ISSN 0749-0208. The main goal of this study is to estimate the coastal vulnerability on a stretch of coastline by using two different methodologies and to check if both methodologies give rise to similar results or if notably dissimilar assessments are obtained. To reach the above mentioned objective, a new experimental methodology (Benassai et al, 2009) based on inundation of the inshore land and the well known USGS methodology (Gornitz et al, 1994) are applied and compared. In the first approach, a new parameter, named as impact index, is calculated by using wave climate and geomorphologic data. In general, impact index depends on run-up heigh...

The low coasts of the Campania are generally located in the main alluvial coastal plains of the region. These coasts have been affected, during late Quaternary, by strong progradation and more recently by erosion and episodic flooding particularly during storm events. The causes are essentially to be sought in the decrease in sedimentary discharge due to forest hydraulic engineering works but especially to the construction of many artificial dams along the main rivers, coupled whit subsidence and or increases in sea levels. Such events generally occur in coastal plains where the sectors close to the present-day dune ridge are morphologically lower (in general no more than 1–3 m a.s.l.). The main goal of this study was to provide a synopsis of the coastal vulnerability and present a new semi-quantitative method to assess coastal erosion. Eight factors describing the current system state of the beaches and the effects of the wave climate and human activity were combined to assess the potential erosion of the Sele River coastal plain. The method shows the high erosion potential at the mouths of the Sele, Picentino and Tusciano Rivers, while the areas south of the Sele river mouth and the zone stretching from Lido Lago to the Asa channel showed low hazard levels.

An exhaustive daily rainfall and extreme air temperature series (1883-2000) was reconstructed for Agnone, a small town in Molise (Central Italy). Long-term analysis identified an increasing trend of 1.3 ± 0.4°C per 100 years, statistically confident at the 95% level, only for minimum air temperature, and of a seasonal march, reasonably stationary along the entire investigated interval, explaining more than 50% of the corresponding monthly variance, with maxima in November and July for rainfall and air temperature, respectively. Daily clustering analysis evidenced scale-invariant properties, largely dependent on the threshold value, for all the investigated parameters.

As documented by various recent studies (AUCELLI et alii, 2004; FAILLACE, 2004; IANNANTUONO et alii, 2005; GRUPPO NAZIONALE PER LA RICERCA DELL'AMBIENTE COSTIERO, 2006a; AUCELLI et alii, 2007; IANNAANTUONO, 2007); the evolution of the 36 km long Molise coast during the last fifty years is characterised by a reevailing tendency to shoreline retreat. The aim of the present paper is to provide a precise description of the Molise coast with rerference to its coastal morphology along with a detailed frame of the evolution of its shoreline and first indications on the potential erosion risk. The Molise coast that includes ca. 13 km of high coast behaves altogether as a low coast system, because the cliffs limiting the high coast to the sea are located, except for the promontory of Termoli, at variable distance from the shoreline. Beaches are present nearly all along the coast and anthropic structures frequently are located along their inner edges. To analyse shoreline variations in detail, the Molise coast was subdivided in nine reaches (T1-T9) of different lengths and characters. Quantitative analyses on linear shoreline variations and related surface changes were carried out for the 1954-2003 time interval and relative sub-periods 1954-1992 and 1992-2003. From 1954 to 2003, the general shoreline retreat caused a total loss of ca. 1.090.000 m 2 of coastal area (beaches, dunes, deltaic and retro-dune areas). The most sensible reaches to erosion are T1 and T7 that respectively comprise the mouths of the Trigno and Biferno rivers, which experienced in this period a retreat of ca. 250 and 350 metres, respectively. A consistent acceleration of shoreline retreat with time is shown by the comparison between sub-periods 1954-1992 and 1992-2003. Though the second period is much shorter (11 years vs. 38 years), TI and T7, in particular, totalize nearly 50% of the surface losses that occurred during the precedent period. Due to such an acceleration, during the second period ca. 32% of the total erosion occurred, giving rise to a loss of ca. 348.609 m 2 . For reaches T1 and T7, the average annual retreat rates changed from respectively 2.37 and 3.24 m/y to 4.24 and 4.74 m/y during the second period, when reach T7 underwent a maximum retreat of about 231 metres which corresponds to an average annual retreat of 21 m/y. The reconstructed acceleration of erosion is in net contrast to the increasing protection of the coast by defense structures as evident above all for reach T7. In order to better understand this apparent inconsistency, and the consequent hypothesis for a possible meteoclimatic influence (already outlined for part of the Molise coast by AUCELLI et alii, 2007), a detailed analysis of the period 1992-2003, subdivided therefore into sub-periods 1992-1997, 1997-2000, 2000-2003, was carried out. This analysis showed consistent differences between the distinguished sub-periods in relation to average annual shoreline variations and the percentage with which each reach contributed to erosion. The observed differences strongly support the hypothesis that variations of meteomarine conditions have strongly favoured erosion during the second period, and in particular during sub-period 2000-2003, thus outlining the need to adequately consider such climatic influence when developing potential erosion scenaries related to climate change. Starting from the basic morphological and topographical features of the Molise coast, in order to examine the potential erosion risk, the rates of annual average linear shoreline variations for periods 1954-1992 and 1992-2003 were examined on the basis of the risk scheme developed by GORNITZ et alii (1994). Such an examination allowed to evaluate the degree of erosion risk for each reach and to attribute, in particular, a very high erosion risk to reaches T1 and T7, which, indeed, are the main responsible for the observed shoreline instability. Further analyses carried out on coastal sectors characterised by the occurrence of constructions located up to ca. 200 m from the current shoreline along the inner edges of the beaches, allowed to calculate the potential time span required by marine erosion to possibly affect the constructions. Said calculations point out for the northern sectors of reaches T1 and T7 time spans of 13,5 and 22 years, respectively, and therefore a real, and very high erosion risk. As documented by various recent studies (AUCELLI et alii, 2004; FAILLACE, 2004; IANNANTLlONO et alii, 2005; GRUPPO NAZIONALE PER LA RICERCA DELL'AMBIENTE COSTIERO, 2006a; AUCELLI et alii, 2007; IANNANTUONO, 2007), the evolution of the 36 km long Molise coast during the last fifty years is characterised by a prevailing tendency to shoreline retreat. The aim of the present paper is to provide a precise description of the Molise coast with reference to its coastal morphology along.