Modelling Approach for NBSs Suitability Assessment in an Agricultural Area under Changing Climate Conditions: Case Studies in the Massaciuccoli Catchment (Central Italy)

Nature-Based Solutions (NBSs) are considered worldwide as a suitable approach for mitigating the impact of industrial agriculture on sediments and nutrient losses. However, their actual effectiveness is still questioned. In cases where site measurements of NBS performance are scarce, models can provide useful insights if accurately set. This study analyzed the effects of vegetated buffer strips (VBSs) and winter cover crops (WCCs) planted in some herbaceous cropping systems within the Massaciuccoli reclamation area (Vecchiano, Central Italy). Analyses stem from modelling water and soil dynamics by applying SWAT+ at field scale on high resolution close-range photogrammetric digital terrain model (DTM), real crop rotations, and a detailed calendar of the main agronomic interventions. The NBS implementation was modelled in two experimental areas, showing contrasting soil properties. Comparing results from the modelling of different scenarios highlighted that NBS mitigative effect is influenced by soil properties and local topographic irregularities, which could induce concentrated flows. Long term climate changes can induce relevant different effects by varying the nature of soil

Photogrammetric 3D model via smartphone GNSS sensor. Workflow, error estimate, and best practices

Geotagged smartphone photos can be employed to build digital terrain models using structure from motion-multiview stereo (SfM-MVS) photogrammetry. Accelerometer, magnetometer, and gyroscope sensors integrated within consumer-grade smartphones can be used to record the orientation of images, which can be combined with location information provided by inbuilt global navigation satellite system (GNSS) sensors to geo-register the SfM-MVS model. The accuracy of these sensors is, however, highly variable. In this work, we use a 200 m-wide natural rocky cliff as a test case to evaluate the impact of consumer-grade smartphone GNSS sensor accuracy on the registration of SfM-MVS models. We built a high-resolution 3D model of the cliff, using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for image acquisition and ground control points (GCPs) located using a differential GNSS survey for georeferencing. This 3D model provides the benchmark against which terrestrial SfM-MVS photogrammetry models, built using smartphone images and registered using built-in accelerometer/gyroscope and GNSS sensors, are compared. Results show that satisfactory post-processing registrations of the smartphone models can be attained, requiring: (1) wide acquisition areas (scaling with GNSS error) and (2) the progressive removal of misaligned images, via an iterative process of model building and error estimation

Factors influencing short-term parasitoid establishment and efficacy for the biological control of Halyomorpha halys with the samurai wasp Trissolcus japonicus

Background: Classical biological control has been identified as the most promising approach to limit the impact of the invasive pest species Halyomorpha halys (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae). This study investigated the parasitism rate at sites where the biocontrol agent Trissolcus japonicus (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae) was released and where its unintentional introduction took place, in the Trentino-South Tyrol region. The effect of land-use composition was studied to understand which factors favor the establishment of hosts and parasitoids, including native and exotic species. Results: The released T. japonicus were detected a year after the start of the program, with a significant parasitoid impact and discovery, compared to control sites. Trissolcus japonicus was the most abundant H. halys parasitoid, and Trissolcus mitsukurii and Anastatus bifasciatus were recorded also. The efficacy of T. mitsukurii was lower in sites where T. japonicus was successfully established, suggesting a possible competitive interaction. Parasitism level by T. japonicus at the release sites was 12.5% in 2020 and 16.4% in 2021. The combined effect of predation and parasitization increased H. halys mortality up to 50% at the release sites. Landscape composition analysis showed that both H. halys and T. japonicus were more likely to be found at sites with lower altitude and with permanent crops, whereas other hosts and parasitoids preferred different conditions. Conclusion: Trissolcus japonicus showed a promising impact on H. halys, at release and adventive sites, with minor nontarget effects, mediated by landscape heterogeneity. The prevalence of T. japonicus in landscapes with permanent crops could support IPM in the future. © 2023 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry

Laser Scanning Application for Geostructural analysis of Tuffaceous Coastal Cliffs: the case of Punta Epitaffio, Pozzuoli Bay, Italy

This study presents the results of a Terrestrial Laser Scanner (TLS) application aimed at characterizing the structural pattern of Punta Epitaffio tuffaceous coastal cliff, Pozzuoli Bay, Eastern Tyrrhenian margin. The study site is located in the Campi Flegrei, an active volcanic caldera, characterized by dense urbanization, near the town of Naples, Italy. The 3D digital model of the Punta Epitaffio cliff derived from TLS data, provided a base for the classification of rock discontinuities by geostatistical analysis. In particular, the work flow of geostructural data processing included: 1) statistical analysis of spatial orientation of the facets of the 3D mesh derived by the TLS survey; 2) extraction of the best-fit attitudes (dip and dip direction) of discontinuity sets for each sub-planar patch of the rock face; 3) cluster analysis of best-fit structural discontinuities; 4) definition of all the discontinuity sets and geo-structural classification of 3D model facets; 5) kinematic analysis for the definition of possible failure mechanisms. Kinematic analysis took into account primarily structurally-controlled failure mechanisms (planar sliding, wedge sliding, flexural toppling, and direct toppling). The method illustrated in this research can be extensively applied to identify unstable areas along tuffaceous coastal cliffs and define shape and volume of rocks potentially involved by failures

High-lard and high-fish-oil diets differ in their effects on function and dynamic behaviour of rat hepatic mitochondria

Background Mitochondria are dynamic organelles that frequently undergo fission and fusion processes, and imbalances in these processes may be involved in obesity and insulin resistance. Aims The present work had the following aims: (a) to evaluate whether the mitochondrial dysfunction present in the hepatic steatosis induced by a high-fat diet is associated with changes in mitochondrial dynamics and morphology; (b) to evaluate whether effects on the above parameters differ between high-lard and high-fish-oil diets, as it has been suggested that fish oil may have anti-obesity and anti-steatotic effects by stimulating fatty acids utilisation. Methods The development of hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance was monitored in rats fed a high-lard or high-fish-oil diet. Immunohistochemical and electronic microscopic observations were performed on liver sections. In isolated liver mitochondria, assessments of fatty acids oxidation rate, proton conductance and oxidative stress (by measuring H2O2 release and aconitase activity) were performed. Western blot and immunohistochemical analyses were performed to evaluate the presence of proteins involved in mitochondrial dynamics (i.e., fusion and fission processes). To investigate the fusion process, mitofusin 2 and autosomal dominant optic atrophy-1 (OPA1) were analysed. To investigate the fission process, the presence of dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) and fission 1 protein (Fis1) was assessed. Results High-lard feeding elicited greater hepatic lipid accumulation, insulin resistance with associated mitochondrial dysfunction, greater oxidative stress and a shift towards mitochondrial fission processes (versus high-fish-oil feeding, which had an anti-steatotic effect associated with increased mitochondrial fusion processes). Conclusions Different types of high-fat diets differ in their effect on mitochondrial function and dynamic behaviour, leading to different cellular adaptations to over-feeding

Rapporti tra tettonica e clima durante l'esumazione nelle Alpi Centrali. Evidenze dalla termocronologia e dall'analisi strutturale lungo il traforo ferroviario del Sempione

(U-Th)/He and fission-track analyses of apatite along deep-seated tunnels crossing high-relief mountain ranges offer the opportunity to investigate climate and tectonic forcing on the topographic evolution. In this study, the thermochronologic analysis of a large set of samples collected in the Simplon railway tunnel (western-central Alps; Italy and Switzerland) and along its surface trace, coupled with kinematic and structural analysis of major fault zones intersecting the tunnel, constrains the phenomena controlling the topographic and structural evolution, during the latest stage of exhumation of the Simplon Massif, and the timing in which they operated. The study area is located at the western margin of the Lepontine metamorphic dome where a complex nappe-stack pertaining to the Penninic and Ultrahelvetic domains experienced a fast exhumation from the latest Oligocene onward. The exhumation was mainly accommodated by a west-dipping low-angle detachment (the Simplon Fault Zone) which is located just 8 km to the west of the tunnel. However, along the section itself several faults related to two principal phases both with important dip-slip kinematics have been detected. Cooling rates derived from our thermocronological data vary from about 10 °C/Ma at about 10 Ma to about 35 °C/Ma in the last 5 Ma. Such increase in the cooling rate corresponds to the most important climatic change recorded in the northern hemisphere in the last 10 Ma, i.e. the shift to wetter conditions at the end of the Messinian salinity crisis and the inception of glacial cycles in the northern hemisphere. In addition, (U-Th)/He and fission-track age patterns lack of important correlation with the topography suggesting that the present-day relief morphology is the result of recent erosional dynamics. More in details, the (U-Th)/He tunnel ages show an impressive uniformity at 2 Ma, whereas cooling rates calculated at 1 Ma increase towards the two major valleys. This indicates a focusing of erosive processes in the valleys which led to the shaping of present-day topography. Structural analysis documents the presence of two phases of brittle deformation postdating the metamorphic phases in the area. The first one is directly related to the last phase of activity along the Simplon Fault Zone and is characterized by extension towards SO and vertical shortening. The young one is characterized by extension towards NO and horizontal shortening in a along the NE-SO direction. Structures related to the first phase of brittle deformation generate important variations in the older ages' dataset, until 3 Ma, suggesting that tectonics controlled rocks exhumation up to that age. Structures related to the second phase generate some variations also in the younger age dataset, highlighting the activity of faults bordering the massif and suggesting a continuous activity also after 2 Ma. However, most of (U-Th)/He tunnel ages, varying slightly around 2 Ma, document that the Simplon area has experienced primarily erosional exhumation in this time span. In conclusion, all our data suggest that in the central Italian Alps the climatic signal gradually overrode the tectonic effects after about 5 Ma, as a consequence of the climatic instability started at end of Messinian salinity crisis and improved by the onset of glaciations in the northern hemisphere

Topographic amplification and debris remobilization as a cause for increasing rockfall hazard in seismic areas: A case study in Central Italy

The long-lasting earthquake sequence of Central Italy in 2016 triggered around 1370 landslides, most of which were observed close to ridge areas. The area of San Pellegrino di Norcia (PG) was badly affected by the 6.5 Mw Norcia earthquake that triggered 95 rock falls and slides with volumes ranging from 0.5 m3 to 380 m3 over an area of 0.6 km2. The presence of such a large number of coseismic landslides in a small area provided a suitable case study for investigating triggering mechanisms related to slope morphology and the subsequent propagation dynamics of rockfalls. To this aim, detailed field data collection and up-to-date terrain modelling based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) imagery were carried out. They permitted to perform morphometric analyses oriented at defining: (a) the frequency of occurrence of rockfall with reference to the energy relief, (b) the relationships between extensions of source and propagation areas and (c) the change in the shape of the propagation area as a function of the different terrains crossed by rockfalls. The results of the morphometric study were compared with dynamic analyses of rock-slides onset and simulations of rockfall propagation. They highlighted that, disregarding the presence of steep rock faces, the failures were located close to ridge and slope edges, thus pointing out the role of topography on triggering of landslides. Moreover, it was possible to observe that even small-sized rockfalls had a widening effect in the foothill characterized by longer runouts compared to rockfall simulations. This issue was due to the mobilization of the talus debris covering the limestone bedrock. This study investigates an area where a significant increase in rockfall hazard can be expected due to the coupled effect of topographic amplification and debris remobilization

Karst collapse susceptibility assessment: A case study on the Amalfi Coast (Southern Italy)

This paper presents a study to evaluate the collapse susceptibility of a karst cave located along a slope on the Amalfi coast (southern Italy) and the presumable geomorphological evolution of the whole slope as a result of cave roof collapse. In the study area, several natural karst caves with volumes varying between 1000 and > 10,000 m3 were inventoried and the most likely genetic processes were identified. Some of them proved to be remnants of already collapsed caves, while others were in precarious stability conditions. The caves are usually located upslope or very close to the main populated resorts. A detailed geological, geomorphological and geostructural study was performed on a very wide, deep cave (called the “Saraceno” cave), on which the resort town of Conca de' Marini has been built. The study was carried out through a multidisciplinary approach, which included classical field geological observations, sometimes requiring the support of rock-climbing geologists, experts in photogrammetric surveys and terrestrial laser scanning techniques (TLS). TLS surveys allowed the reconstruction of an accurate geometric and geostructural model of the cave and its relationship with the upslope Conca de' Marini resort. Furthermore, it allowed the thickness of the cave overburden to be determined in detail; ground surfaces most susceptible to collapse were also identified. In the event of possible widespread collapse, several buildings and transportation infrastructures could be involved. As the cave is located on a very steep slope, a debris avalanche could be triggered in the event of a catastrophic failure, and the landslide debris, characterized by a presumably high magnitude and velocity, could involve a wide slope area down to the coast. The failure evolution could be very similar to that which took place in Amalfi in the late 19th century