Intrinsic vulnerability of the Alburni karst system (southern Italy)
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Published:January 01, 2007
Abstract
In order to, respectively, assess the resource vulnerability and the source vulnerability of the Alburni karst system (southern Italy), the COP and VULK methods have been applied in the framework of the ‘European Approach’ as proposed in 2003 by the COST (Co-Operation in Science and Technology) 620 task group – Action: ‘Vulnerability and Risk Mapping for the Protection of Carbonate – Karst – Aquifers’. The Alburni massif, with more than 500 caves, is the most important karst area of southern Italy. The drainage network is not continuous; there are several endoreic basins and large zones without superficial drainage but...
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Contents
Natural and Anthropogenic Hazards in Karst Areas: Recognition, Analysis and Mitigation

The book presents an overview of the main hazards affecting karst, including collapse and subsidence phenomena, hydrological hazards and human-induced geohazards. Consideration is also given to the problems of geohazard management in karst. The geological and hydrological properties of karst terrains make them among the most fragile in the world and pose serious problems for land managers. Sustainable development in these terrains requires efforts to limit geohazards of anthropogenic origin and to recognize and mitigate against those of natural origin. Aimed at providing the reader with worldwide case studies, the contributions cover a range of geological and morphological settings. Geographically, the fourteen papers discuss very different karst areas, from North America, the Caribbean and Asia to several karst areas in Europe, including the British Isles, Spain, France and Italy.