The experience of southern Apulia (Italy) coastal karst aquifer: Indications for the management

Prediction of the salt water intrusion in coastal karst aquifers is a key issue in several regions of the world. Southern Apulia (Italy) hosts a huge aquifer of karstified lime-stones, that provides 90% of the water demand of this sub-region. The exploitation of the aquifer currently exceeds its natural recharge capacity. The groundwater in wide coastal areas of the sub-region underwent an increase of the salt content. Salinization of the groundwater in such an aquifer cannot be predicted by means of conventional models. An effective model for a quantitative prediction of the fluid flow and transport of solute in the aquifer, aimed at a better understanding of the phenomenon, is therefore needed. This model should account for the discrete nature of the aquifer. In this paper, several situations are reported in order to describe the importance of the inhomogeneities (fracture systems, fault zones, karst conduit, preferential flow levels) in the salinization process of the southern Apulia karst aquifer

Analysis of Fracture Mechanics Tests on Opalinus Clay

Many studies have recently been conducted to evaluate various mechanical characteristics of the Opalinus Clay (OPA) formation in view of its potential use as the hosting rock for the Swiss nuclear waste repositories. Its sedimentary bedding makes OPA a transversely isotropic rock and its directional mechanical properties need to be measured. This paper reports on an experimental and computational approach that was adopted to define the parallel-to-bedding fracture mechanics (FM) parameters of OPA in Mode-I. OPA cores from Mont Terri Underground Research Laboratory (URL) were submitted to laboratory tests on notched semi-circular specimens under three-point bending (SCB). In these tests, crack propagation is forced along the notch direction. However, the 45° bedding inclination of the specimen axis frequently deviated the crack from the expected direction. An analysis of the SCB tests was performed by means of non-linear FM techniques and the pertinent Mode-I parameters along the bedding were estimate

Comportamento vegetativo e produtivo da videira e composição da uva em São Joaquim, Santa Catarina

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o comportamento vegetativo e produtivo das variedades de videira Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot e Sauvignon Blanc, e a composição da uva em São Joaquim, Santa Catarina. Foram avaliadas plantas de um vinhedo comercial, cultivado em espaldeira, a 1.293 m de altitude, durante os ciclos fenológicos 2005/2006 e 2006/2007. As variáveis meteorológicas, a fenologia, o desenvolvimento do dossel e a composição da uva na colheita foram comparados entre os ciclos. As temperaturas mais amenas influenciaram o ciclo fenológico das variedades Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot e Sauvignon Blanc, que é mais longo e tardio que nas outras regiões vitícolas do Brasil. Houve influência significativa da precipitação pluvial sobre a maturação da uva, no ciclo 2006/2007. Os índices de desenvolvimento indicam a necessidade de ajuste no manejo do dossel para um maior equilíbrio entre o crescimento vegetativo e a produção. As variedades Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot e Sauvignon Blanc apresentam elevada qualidade da uva no momento da colheita, sendo adequadas ao cultivo em São Joaquim, SC

Little Ice Age in the Taranto Area (Apulia, Southern Italy) [La piccola età glaciale nell'area di Taranto (Puglia, Italia)]

Nell’area di Taranto depositi marini terrazzati coprono i sedimenti fini di colmamento della Fossa Bradanica confinando l’acquifero carsico della Piattaforma carbonatica Apula. In tale contesto, le variazioni del livello del mare ed i suoi stazionamenti interagendo con i meccanismi idrogeologici, hanno contribuito a determinare dinamiche geomorfologiche ed idrogeologiche. Più in particolare, mentre gli studi geologici consentono una buona ricostruzione di tali processi nel lungo periodo, indagini storiche permettono un significativo riconoscimento di eventi determinati dalla Piccola Età Glaciale dello scorso millennio nell’area di interesse

Evolution of seawater intrusion in coastal aquifers of Pontina Plain (Italy)

In the last ten years it has been carried on a research project on the evolution of seawater intrusion in coastal aquifers of Pontina Plain (Italy). As a matter of fact groundwater in the coastal plain between Sabaudia and Terracina, south of Latina, Latium shows a number of problems, including salinization deriving from sea water intrusion or from different processes and from the superimposition of theirselves. The test site is an area of about 80 km2, most part of which coastal and wetland since the beginning of the previous century. In the last fifty years, when the wetland became a plan, they have been stood up in it many different human activities like industrial firms, and agricultural plantations, which represent the most part of fruits and vegetables feeding people of Centre Italy. The effects of groundwater overexploitation on seawater intrusion and on groundwater resource availability start nowadays to be sensitive. In this paper are presented and discussed the results of the study, which involved the analysis of 4891 stratigraphical reports, 91 VES (Vertical Electrical Soundings) utilizing the Schlumberger electrode array, driven in 2004, starting from the results of two previous geophysical investigation campaigns achieved in 1952 first, and in later sixties later, 45 logs meter by meter (CTD data, TDS and PH measurements), 58 groundwater level measurements, driven in 2004, 15 isotopic analysis on ground water samples. As it could be well understood it has been adopted a multisystem approach based on the integrated application of different investigation methods to set up the actual framework of seawater intrusion and the evolution it has had in the last fifty years