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Berti et al. /
Qualità dell’ambiente urbano – XI Rapporto (2015)
ISPRA Stato dell’Ambiente 63/15 pagg. 174 – 195
175
Abstract
The Italian peninsula is particularly susceptible to hydraulic phenomena triggered by
intense rainfall events, with very different effects depending on geological,
geomorphological and weather conditions of the territory. The heavier consequences
are concentrated in those areas where anthropic changes have deeply modified the
landscape, making territory more vulnerable to natural hazards and subject to
environmental, economic and social effects.
In the last two centuries the increasing amount of population in the main urban areas
has led to modifications in the original hydrographic pattern by the alteration of
terrains’ permeability, the overbuilding of flood plains, the narrowing of hydraulic
sections and the artificial canalization of rivers.
In addition to the anthropogenic factors, the global climatic changes entail an
increasing occurrence of extreme events with the changes in the rainfall patterns and
the average decreasing of rainfalls (extremely concentrated).
The relationships between climate changes, anthropic modifications and extreme
events in urban areas are very complex. A strong help for reducing these urcentainty
conditions could be the construction and the analysis of long temporal data series.
This paper aims at collecting data on environmental effects and socio-economic
damages due to flood events generated by meteorological extreme events in urban
areas. Data and information are extracted from various editions of the Environmental
Data Yearbook and allow to highlight how main urban areas, also for their strategic
positioning along major river basins, are increasingly hit by intense rainfall events
causing catastrophic effects.
Keywords
Anthropic modifications, Extreme events, Flood events, Urban areas