Sedimenti / MARIO CAPRIOTTI by Les Rencontres de la photographie, Arles

SEDIMENTI

WebGIS Hydrogeomorphological Maps of Puglia, north coast of Brindisi, with evidence of surface hydrography (link: http://93.51.158.165/geomorfologica)

SEDIMENTI Mario Capriotti

WebGIS Hydrogeomorphological maps of Puglia, north coast of Brindisi, with evidence of silty-sandy components, arenitic, loose deposits with a prevalent pelitic component and sandy-gravel (link: http://93.51.158.165/geomorfologica)

1:30 scale physical model of a port built in the tank of the LIC Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the DICATECh Polytechnic of Bari

Modello fisico scala 1:30 di masso artificiale utilizzao come unità di mantellata nella realizzazione delle dighe frangiflutti gettate in opera. Tipologia Cubo Antifer (modello realizzato dal LIC - Laboratorio di Ingegneria Costiera del Politecnico di Bari - DICATECh)

Graphic elaboration from the GeoLithological Map of Puglia, based on the elaboration and synthesis of the Geological Map of Italy, product of the agreement between the Puglia Basin Authority and the Department of Geology and Geophysics of the University of Bari of 6 April 2009

1:30 scale physical model of a port built in the tank of the LIC Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the DICATECh Polytechnic of Bari

www.poliba.it

The scientific contribution for the protection of the sea by Michele Mossa

Professor of Hydraulics at the Polytechnic of Bari e Scientific Director of the LIC - Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the Polytechnic of Bari. 1. Introduction The sea plays a key role in everyday life both directly and indirectly. Consider, for example, its influence on the climate and on both summer and winter temperatures, on tourism, on fishing and the important natural resources it contains, like oil and minerals for example. The sea has always had an important role in history. The Mediterranean sea, the “Mare Nostrum” of the ancient Romans, for example, was for centuries the cradle of civilization. Indeed the greatest civilizations of the ancient world emerged, flourished and waned on its coasts: the Egyptians, even though they developed on the banks of the Nile, the Phoenicians, the Mycenaeans and the Greeks, especially in their maximum expansion of Magna Grecia, those from Middle East (the Persians, Assyrians and Babylonians) and lastly the Romans and the Arabs. It has also been the most widely used route for trade and cultural exchanges between East and West for centuries. On the other hand, the sea is also a huge economic resource. Many activities are based on the sea and its products. Just consider the fishery products or the service industries like tourism for example, that base much of their very existence on the sea. From these few lines it is obvious that writing a small text on the sea is undoubtedly a difficult task, because at best one runs the risk of not including some of the essential related issues or the discussion is limited, as in the case of this volume, just to the region of Puglia. Indeed there are so many issues discussed on the subject of the sea, ranging from history to geology, from hydrology to marine engineering, to ecology etc., that obviously a comprehensive discussion definitely seems too broad and diverse to be covered in this volume. 2. The sea as component of an ecosystem The definition of an ecosystem is much more complex than you can imagine, but in an attempt to give an answer, certainly not exhaustive, an ecosystem can be defined as a geographical area containing all the living organisms (humans, animals, plants and microorganisms) and their immediate physical environment (like the earth, water and air). The fundamental characteristics of an ecosystem can be summarized as follows: 1) All the elements of an ecosystem are interconnected. 2) The management of any resource of an ecosystem affects the other resources of the ecosystem, all, therefore interconnected with each other. The health of an ecosystem implies the exploration of the dynamic nature of the multiple causes which influence human health and the surrounding world. Emphasis must be placed on the notion of balance and the need to measure an ecosystem’s response to human interventions. In order to understand an ecosystem’s state of health, an analysis of the sources of pollution becomes essential. In particular, paying attention to the water component of an ecosystem, of which the sea represents the greatest part, we can see that with the growth in population, migration and industrial development, the quantity of pollutants burdening receiving waters (lake, river, coastal waters etc.) has increased dramatically. Water pollution occurs when a water body is subjected to discharges of large quantities of material. The types of water pollutants in general, and of the sea in particular, may be listed as follows: 1) Toxic substances. A toxic substance is a chemical pollutant not naturally present in the aquatic ecosystem. The main toxic pollutants are herbicides, pesticides and industrial compounds.

2) Organic substances. Organic pollution occurs when there is an excess of organic material, like fertilizers or waste water. When the organic material increases, likewise the number of decomposing bacteria increases; these bacteria increase rapidly and use a large quantity of oxygen during their growth; a lack of oxygen can cause the death of the aquatic organisms. 3) Thermal pollution. Thermal pollution occurs when water is used as cooling liquid for industrial plants or power plants and subsequently released into the aquatic system at a higher temperature than the original one. Thermal pollution provokes a reduction in the level of oxygen dissolved in water and an increase in the demand for oxygen from the dissolved organisms. 4) Ecological pollution. Ecological pollution occurs when chemical, organic or thermal pollution are directly caused by nature rather than by human activity: - increase in the sand content of a canal due to landslides; - animals of appreciable size drowned after a flood; - geological events of some significance, like volcanic eruptions. It is obvious that all these briefly mentioned sources of pollution create various problems, whose solutions require different kinds of expertise: economic, social, cultural, but also scientific and technological. In the following greater attention will be paid to this last aspect, in the attempt to highlight some of the major research topics in progress to safeguard the environment, of which the sea is an essential component. 3. The technical and scientific contribution in the context of the issues of the coastline and marine environment In order to answer the issues outlined earlier from a scientific and technological viewpoint, in many research facilities, both at a national and international level, various activities are being undertaken aimed at understanding some physical phenomena, of which the sea is the main component. In particular, brief mention will be given to some of the research activities that the group coordinated by the author has been carrying out for some years at the LIC (Coastal Engineering Laboratory) of the Polytechnic of Bari. The technical and scientific contribution certainly helps to correctly guide the anthropic interventions in order to also protect the sea resources. It is appropriate to point out again how the brief observations made previously, as obvious as they are fundamental, highlight the importance that the sea resources (and water resources in general) assume for mankind and enable us to perceive how dangerous the anthropic interventions on the territory can be, if carried out without an in-depth study which defines the adverse effects that such interventions could produce on the environment. A really grueling task this, if you consider that a generic intervention on the territory, sometimes carried out with the intention of preserving it, could result in undesirable effects in times and places even extremely distant from those in which it takes place. It is the so-called effect of the ‘chicken-and-egg’ nature (according to which a reaction corresponds to each action with a progression of phenomena, for which the exact combination of which is the “cause” and which is the “effect” is not known) and of the mutual interaction of processes which involve the water environment and the earth environment, to the point of making a boundary between the two indecipherable and pointless. So what are the paths to follow? Which intervention methods to propose? Before we look for valid answers to these questions, it is essential to observe that the consequences of a generic anthropic intervention may be felt under time/space scales varying from seconds/meters to millennia/hundreds of kilometers. The space/time scales defined “instantaneous” are those typical of phenomena linked to primary forces, directly and instantaneously agents (for example, the forces tied to a single tidal wave or a single tidal motion); the scale of “events” is that typical of phenomena bound to seasonal fluctuations (for example, the typical sea storms which can happen in a place over a year, with typical swelling summer waves or rather winter and erosive); the “engineering” scales (also called “historic” scales) are those which concern the phenomena of transformation of the territory relating to long periods but without reaching the “geological” scales.

In the light of the above, these brief considerations on the technical and scientific contribution in the context of the problems of the coastline and of the marine environment will be limited only to the so-called “engineering” space/time scales, consequently omitting the phenomena which, vice versa, occur under geological space/time scales. Given the above, the typical problems of the coastal areas and of the marine environment can be subdivided thus: 1) Problems caused by coastal erosion and, in general, problems of sediment transport. 2) Problems caused by the incorrect, prudent and forward-looking planning, construction and management of maritime works. 3) Diffusion of pollutants in the sea. Think of the diffusers which are used to dispose of civil waste water. 4) Problems caused by oil spills in the sea. The technical and scientific contribution for the purpose of resolution and preferably, the prevention of the environmental destruction of the coastline and the marine environment previously reported, can be summarized in the following strategic points: 1) Analysis aimed at the detailed knowledge of the territory through an in-depth study of hydrography, wave hydrodynamics, circulation currents and the actual destiny of the civil and industrial waste water dumped in the sea. 2) Use of monitoring systems through field measurements. 3) Use of physical modeling, which depending on the phenomena to be studied can be two-dimensional or three-dimensional. 4) Use of mathematical modeling. Usually the combined use of physical and mathematical models is always preferable, allowing the former (together with field measurements) to have very useful experimental answers for the calibration of mathematical models. The latter, in turn, after being appropriately calibrated, allow the analysis of different scenarios with cost and times generally lower than the physical models and field measurements. 5) Use of hybrid models. 6) Definition of vulnerability cards. Many research centers, including the Coastal Engineering Laboratory (LIC) of the Polytechnic of Bari, are highly committed to the study of the strategic points for environmental protection, both through basic research and applied research with productive collaborative relationships with national and international research institutes and public bodies. In particular, at the aforementioned laboratory the studies of marine engineering are carried out through the prudent combination of mathematical and physical models and field measurements. 4. Conclusions The above is an attempt to highlight the importance of the sea resource, as component of an ecosystem. The sea, forever a source of life and wealth, as demonstrated by the few pages of history in this volume, is increasingly used, both as final destination of waste water discharges, and as source of wealth for the beaches and for the whole sea-coast ecosystem and for the fish fauna. Hence the need to protect this resource, which must be used wisely. In this respect the technical and scientific contribution to the protection of this resource is vitally important. Therefore some research activities or support activities for local and regional authorities on the issues of waste water disposal at sea, the diffusion and spillage of hydrocarbons, coastal erosion and anthropic interventions have been highlighted, with particular attention to very vulnerable areas, like protected marine areas. The scientific contribution to solving the problems of the sea resource is certainly important and also supports the decisions the public bodies have to make for planning the costal territory. Sito web: http://www.michelemossa.it/

Geositi Project

With the “Geositi Project” a systematical and scientifically based census of the geological heritage has begun in Puglia. The project is financed by Axis IV of the Operative Plan (OP) of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2007-2013, Action 4.4.1, Line 4.4.

This census is a direct consequence of the Regional Law 33/2009 on the protection and enhancement of the geological and speleological heritage. It should be pointed out that the Puglia Region is one of the few in Italy that has adopted a specific law to protect and enhance the geological and speleological heritage. This project is a complex and important research activity because it aims to deliver to the people of Puglia and the many tourists and visitors who stay there, the awareness of the objective relevance of the geodiversity of our territory.

A geodiversity which plays a fundamental role not only in preserving the memory of the evolution and transformation of the territory but also as an integral part of the landscapes and shapes that identify our region. http://www.geositipuglia.eu

Sedimenti Descriptions and places

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (BR)

North coast of Brindisi, area of Giancola - Torre Testa, Falesia detail, small desiccation cracks caused by weathering on a wall of kaolinic sand

North coast of Brindisi, area of Giancola - Torre Testa, Falesia detail, small desiccation cracks caused by weathering on a wall of kaolinic sands; shale fragments from the wall can be seen at its base

North coast of Brindisi, Apani area, Falesia detail, fissures on weathered sandstone

Falesia, coastline north of Brindisi, Giancola Torre Testa area.

Falesia detail, North coast of Brindisi, Torre Testa zone.

Falesia Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (Br)

LIC DICATECh Bari - Detail of a 3D physical model scale 1:30 of a port built in the tank of the Coastal Engineering Laboratory (LIC) of the Polytechnic of Bari in Valenzano

Wetland in Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (BR)

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (BR)

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, detail of Falesia couch grass vegetation, Carovigno (BR)

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, detail of egapropilo or egagropila, Carovigno (BR)

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (BR)

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, artificial defense barrier, Carovigno (BR)

Egagropilo or egagropila, spherical or oval, light brown clusters of a felty consistency composed of fibrous residue of algae like Sea lettuce (Ulva lactuca) or of genuine marine plants of the Posidonia and Zostera species which accumulate on the shores, driven by the waves

Sample of sand which has partially undergone diagenisis through bioturbation (action of living organisms within the sediments or at the watersediment interface)

Falesia sample, organogenic debris rock

Sample of sand which has partially undergone diagenisis through bioturbation (action of living organisms within the sediments or at the watersediment interface)

Sample of ostrea on organogenic debris

Falesia sample at levels of organogenic coarse sandstone, slightly laminated

Sample of dry Posidonia alga, aquatic plant; they form underwater meadows and are ecologically important and naturally defend the Falesia from erosive phenomena

Sample of sand which has partially undergone diagenisis through bioturbation (action of living organisms within the sediments or at the watersediment interface)

Sample of ostrea and other bivalve mollusks

Falesia detail of Calcarenite of Gravina in wetland, Pantanagianni, Carovigno (BR)

Dune vegetation ( couch grass), wetland in Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (BR)

Falesia detail, North coast of Brindisi, forms of weathering on clayey sands

Falesia detail of Calcarenite of Gravina in wetland with evidence of fossils of bivalve mollusks and echini, Torre Santa Sabina area, Carovigno (BR)

Falesia detail, North coast of Brindisi, ostrea in organogenic sandstones

Falesia detail, effect of weathering on a wall of medium-coarse sand, laminated

Falesia detail, North coast of Brindisi, ostrea in organogenic sandstones

Sand used for granulometry models with a movable base, respectively of 205 µm (LIC – Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the Polytechnic of Bari,- DICATECh)

Dune detail at Pantanagianni, Carovigno (BR)

Wetland, Pantanagianni , Carovigno (BR)

Dune at Pantanagianni, dry Posidonia alga deposit, Carovigno (BR)

Dune detail at Specchiolla , Carovigno (BR)

North coast of Brindisi, Falesia detail with evident phenomena of alveolization and speleothemes on a weakly cemented sand wall

Falesia North coast of Brindisi, alternation of mediumfine grain sandy levels and bioturbated sandstone, produced by the action of the wave motion

Calcarenite detail, Torre Guaceto Carovigno (BR)

Falesia detail, medium-fine grain sand with vegetation, Torre Guaceto, Carovigno (BR)

Seashore environment inundated with the presence di Posidonia algae, Pantanagianni, Carovigno (BR)

Cracks and fissures from dessication and crumbling on clayey sand walls, North coast of Brindisi area

Wave motion on the shore , Pantanagianni, Carovigno (BR)

Cracks and fissures from dessication and crumbling on clayey sand walls, North coast of Brindisi area

Night photo beach and Falesia, Pantanagianni, Carovigno (BR)

Night photo beach and Falesia, Apani, North coast of Brindisi

Moments of wave disturbance on a 3D physical model scale 1:30 of a port built in the tank of the LIC Laboratory in Valenzano (Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the Polytechnic of Bari,- DICATECh)

Scale 1:30 model of artificial rock used as mattress unit in the construction of breakwater dams cast in place. Type: Antifer blocks (model created by LIC Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the Polytechnic of Bari - DICATECh)

Scale 1:30 model of artificial rock used as mattress unit in the construction of breakwater dams cast in place. Type: Maya (model created by LIC - Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the Polytechnic of BariDICATECh)

Breakwater dam system Brindisi north

Foto notturna, moto ondoso su battigia, Pantanagianni, Carovigno (BR)

Penna Grossa, Torre Guaceto, nature reserve and protected area of national interest, Carovigno (BR)

Phaos Edizioni Photo Editing and Editorial Coordination Massimo Siragusa Art Director Giuseppe Rosalia Printed in March 2021 at Miartè Catania