Ongoing channel changes in some major rivers in southern Italy

Some major rivers in southern Italy (Trigno, Biferno, Fortore and Volturno), as most of Italy’s rivers, have suffered significant channel changes during the last 60 years. Channel adjustments mainly consisted in channel narrowing and bed lowering coupled with pattern changes. Over the last 10-15 years, these rivers have undergone some important modifications in their evolutionary trends. More specifically, the Trigno River and the reaches of the Fortore River located upstream the Occhito dam are interested by moderate channel recovery, while the Volturno and Biferno rivers and the Fortore reaches located downstream the dam are affected by slight channel recovery or no significant changes in morphology. Key driving factors of these recent evolutionary trends seem to be the occurrence of major flood events and the degree of channel mobility that is conditioned by channel works and riparian woody vegetation.