Application of remote sensing to estimate river sediment transport in the Calabrian basins (Italy)

Over recent decades, Soil Erosion by Water (WSE) has become a severe and extended issue affecting all European countries. The European Mediterranean countries are particularly prone to erosion because they are subject to prolonged dry periods followed by heavy erosive rains falling on steep slopes characterized by fragile soils. In particular, natural conditions and the human impact have made Calabria region, in southern Italy, particularly prone to intense WSE. The paper describes the methodology adopted to quantify solid transport in the Allaro river basin, located on the Ionian coast of Calabria. The methodology is divided into three phases, as follows: morphometric characterization of the river basin, identification of the available gauges and analysis of rainfall and temperature data and influence area of each gauge, and estimate of solid transport using the Gavrilovic model. This model is particularly valid for rivers such as the Calabrian ones where most of the solid transport is linked to the WSE. The methodology described in this paper is suitable to all basins with morphometric and hydrological characteristics like those Allaro and Calabrian basins. Furthermore, an improvement in the river transport estimate is important not only for the planning and management of the areas near the rivers but also for the coastal areas near the mouths.