Integrated geomorphological and geospatial analysis for mapping fluvial landforms in Murge basse karst of Apulia (Southern Italy)

Teofilo G., Gioia D., Spalluto L.

fluvial landforms  Apulia region  geospatial analysis  Murge karst  Fluvial landforms  Geospatial analysis  General Earth and Planetary Sciences  geomorphological mapping  Geomorphological mapping  Southern Italy 

An integrated geomorphological and geospatial study was performed in order to map fluvial landforms in a sector of Lama Lamasinata close to the town of Binetto in the Murge Basse karst (metropolitan area of Bari, Apulia, Southern Italy). This study describes a combined approach, based on geomorphological fieldwork and topographical position index (TPI)-based landform classification, aimed at identifying the main landforms in an anthropically-modified environment, which suffered a progressive transformation of original morphologies. The resulting geomorphological map of fluvial features was then compared with the available cartography in order to highlight the main strength of the applied methodology in mapping fluvial landforms. Moreover, semi-automatic landform classification was performed for the entire catchment of the Lama Lamasinata in order to evaluate the usefulness of the approach for the fast and objective delimitation of widespread geomorphological elements of the Murge area such as flat-bottomed valleys with steep-or gently-dipping flanks and relict incised valleys. We demonstrated that such an approach can efficiently support land use planning in an area affected by hydrogeological hazards.

Source: Geosciences (Basel) 9 (2019): 1–21. doi:10.3390/geosciences9100418

Publisher: Molecular Diversity Preservation International, Basel

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