Indagini sperimentali e modellazione degli effetti idrologici dei cambiamenti di uso del suolo in ambiente mediterraneo

A hydrological study carried out in a hillside covered with Mediterranean maquis and pasture, which replaced the previous natural cover, is presented with the goal to study the effects of the natural vegetation removal on hydraulic characteristics and the hydrological behavior of soil. In this hillslope were monitored continuously the temperature and soil moisture at different depths with TDR probes. It was also carried out the hydraulic characterization of the soil. All tests and experimental observations were carried out in parallel in the soil under the maquis and in the pasture. The results showed that the removal of the Mediterranean vegetation has altered the hydraulic characteristics, the thermal regime and the soil hydrology. Indeed, the soil in the pasture, compared to that under the maquis, has a lower porosity, a higher apparent density, and shows a lower permeability. In the pasture, in winter the soil is close to saturation and ever shows a shallow water table. By contrast, the soil beneath the maquis never reached the saturation of entire soil, also due to the low precipitation measured under the canopy.