Abstract
Abstract. Results deriving from a research focused on the interplay between landslides and urban development are presented here, with reference to two densely populated settings located in the Campania region, Italy: the city of Naples and the island of Ischia. Both areas suffer adverse consequences from various types of landslides since at least 2000 yr. Our study evidences that, despite the long history of slope instabilities, the urban evolution, often illegal, disregarded the high landslide propensity of the hillsides; thus, unsafe lands have been occupied, even in recent years, when proper and strict rules have been enacted to downgrade the landslide risk. It is finally argued that future guidelines should not be entirely based upon physical countermeasures against mass movements. On the contrary, national and local authorities should enforce the territorial control, obliging citizens to respect the existing regulations and emphasizing the role of alternative, non-structural solutions.
Highlights
Anthropogenic modifications to the natural environment are, along with climatic and seismic events, the main factors which can trigger landslides
The growth of urban populations, common in both developed and developing countries, is responsible for an inevitable expansion of urban centres and, above all, of peri-urban areas; the latter progressively move towards marginal lands such as flood-prone areas and hillslopes, otherwise unsuitable for development
The main features of historical and recent landslides that occurred in Naples and Ischia island will be described, along with an outline of the relevant stages which have characterised the urban growth of these territories
Summary
Anthropogenic modifications to the natural environment are, along with climatic and seismic events, the main factors which can trigger landslides. The Phlegrean Fields include both a continental district, where Naples and some minor municipalities are present, and the Phlegrean islands of Ischia and Procida This district, which hosts Naples, the region capital and third city in Italy in population (around one million inhabitants), is an emblematic urban setting highly vulnerable to a variety of natural geohazards, such as volcanic eruptions, bradyseism, earthquakes, coastal erosion, sinkholes and mass movements. The main features of historical and recent landslides that occurred in Naples and Ischia island will be described, along with an outline of the relevant stages which have characterised the urban growth of these territories These aspects will be jointly examined, focusing on some selected areas: the aim is to show how risk has increased over time, as a direct consequence of ill-suited urban policies. Some considerations will be spent on remedial measures and best practices that hopefully public administrators should adopt to ensure a safer territory to their own citizens
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