2 research outputs found
An Integrated Approach for Evaluating the Restoration of the Salinity Gradient in Transitional Waters: Monitoring and Numerical Modeling in the Life Lagoon Refresh Case Study
Large lagoons usually show a salinity gradient due to fresh water tributaries with inner
areas characterized by lower mean values and higher fluctuation of salinity than seawaterdominated
areas. In the Venice Lagoon, this ecotonal environment, characterized in the past by
oligo‐mesohaline waters and large intertidal areas vegetated by reedbeds, was greatly reduced by
historical human environmental modifications, including the diversion of main rivers outside the
Venice Lagoon. The reduction of the fresh water inputs caused a marinization of the lagoon, with
an increase in salinity and the loss of the related habitats, biodiversity, and ecosystem services. To
counteract this issue, conservation actions, such as the construction of hydraulic infrastructures for
the introduction and the regulation of a fresh water flow, can be implemented. The effectiveness of
these actions can be preliminarily investigated and then verified through the combined
implementation of environmental monitoring and numerical modeling. Through the results of the
monitoring activity carried out in Venice Lagoon in the framework of the Life Lagoon Refresh
(LIFE16NAT/IT/000663) project, the study of salinity is shown to be a successful and robust
combination of different types of monitoring techniques. In particular, the characterization of
salinity is obtained by the acquisition of continuous data, field campaigns, and numerical modeling