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URL: http://www.cnr.it/prodotto/i/88929

Development of sinkholes in urban and rural area of Apulia (S Italy) is certainly one of the main hazards in the region. Related both to natural and anthropogenic cavities, sinkholes pose serious problems as regards safeguard of the territory, and have recently been the object of interest by mass media and population. For instance, the sinkholes at Marina di Lesina, the Alliste sinkhole in February 2004,the sinkhole of Via Firenze at Gallipoli on March 29, 2007, the several sinkholes in the Altamura municipality. The present work illustrates the research activities carried out by the Basin Authority of Apulia and the Institute of Research for the Hydrogeological Protection (IRPI) of CNR, aimed at predisposing an updated list of the Municipalities of Apulia Region interested by anthropogenic cavities, and at performing detailed studies about development of the underground cavities, and the likely failures induced. The present work, therefore, does not take into consideration sinkholes directly linked to presence of natural caves. An accurate inventory of the anthropogenic cavities in the region has been created, starting from the list by the local caving federation (FSP). The 564 man-made cavities have been analyzed, while detailed historical, archival and bibliographical researches, in turn integrated by interviews with the responsibles of the Technical Offices, were carried out. A survey form has been created to collect and analyze the information on the inventoried cavities; in such form, particular focus was given to those information useful to preliminarly evaluate the susceptibility to failures of the examined sites, also in relation to presence of elements at risk above the cavities, or in their immediate proximity. The first phase of work allowed to obtain a regional framework of knowledge that was useful to select ten municipalities where to perform analysis at a greater detail. These consisted of detailed geological and morphological descriptions, analysis of typology and distribution of the artificial cavities, evaluation of the overall stability in the areas affected by their presence, and description of the engineering works realized in the past, where present. In addition, three specific sites have been individuated to carry out further topographic surveys, and geological-structural analysis as well. All this work allowed to identify those areas in the regional territory that are mostly threatened by likely development of sinkholes related to anthropogenic cavities; further information on about three hundred other cavities have been then found, in many cases being related to systems of cavities rather than to single caves. This also stresses the very high number of man-made cavities in the region (estimated on the order of some thousands), and the need to continue studying sinkholes related to anthropogenic cavities, in order to contribute to mitigation of the related risk.

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