Due to the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, especially in the actual climate change scenario, accurate and effective planning of torrent control works has become an essential tool to prevent geo-hydrological risk. This type of risk knows no administrative boundaries so the adoption of common strategies to improve watershed management and protect infrastructure, assets and lives becomes essential in vulnerable territories such as Italy and Slovenia. Moreover, modern intervention planning requires working at the basin scale even in cross-boundary contexts. Therefore, cooperation between public authorities, sectoral agencies, and research organisations is the only way to share different perspectives and knowledge enabling the development of joint solutions based on a broader vision of common challenges.
The TORRENT project aims precisely at establishing shared and transnational guidelines to monitor the status and functionality of torrent control works and evaluate the long-term effectiveness of structures, prioritizing the maintenance intervention and improving the watershed management strategies. In this way, it will be possible to implement more rigorous coordination leading to the setting up of a common database of the torrent control works and a large-scale monitoring of geo-hydrological risk by taking advantage of shared data acquisition protocols with the use of new technologies. The innovative aspects of this project consist precisely in the effort to coordinate Italian and Slovenian authorities and entities, which are used to operating autonomously and independently, and to draw up operational protocols to effectively map and monitor the torrent control works in watersheds, identifying their criticality and effects on the ongoing hydro-geomorphic process. In addition, the implementation of new methodological approaches exploiting multi-temporal High-Resolution Topography data (HRT) greatly simplifies the monitoring of sediment dynamics and the understanding of the interaction with torrent control structures over time. Nowadays, the use of remote sensing techniques such as photogrammetry, Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), which also take advantage of acquisition platforms such as drones, allow frequent and low-cost monitoring of the catchments. Thanks to repeated HRT surveys, it is possible to realize multi-temporal Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) useful to quantify the morphological changes and the evolution of erosion and deposition patterns in channels equipped with torrent control works.
Therefore, the TORRENT project intends to establish common guidelines for the planning and maintenance of torrent control works providing simple, quick, and user-friendly tools (e.g., Maintenance Priority index, updating and shared structures database, multi-temporal DEMs) for stakeholders. By exploiting field surveys and remote sensing data over time, it is possible to constantly identify areas most prone to hazards and find more appropriate or new solutions (e.g., taking advantage of ecosystem approaches like bio-engineering interventions) for decision-makers, management authorities and the resident population. The TORRENT project will start by collecting and sharing historical data related to geo-hydrological processes, HRT surveys, torrent control works information and mitigation strategies, allowing the development of an innovative joint methodology. Then the project will work on pilot watersheds to demonstrate the applicability of the joint methodology and provide common intervention guidelines to address management issues of different watersheds in Italy and Slovenia. As a result, the project will increase the exchange of experience and support the implementation of more effective and sustainable shared interventions, providing new tools to improve watershed resilience. Cooperation will enable a stronger mitigation strategy against climate change
The objectives of the project are to:
Informest supports the Central Directorate for Agri-food, Forestry and Fisheries Resources, in the administrative management, tender procedures, reporting and certification of project expenditure and also in communication and dissemination activities where not the responsibility of other Partners. Informest participates in coordination and technical project meetings and in the final conference and information events.
On Wednesday, July 23 at 11:30 AM, the second Italian-language webinar will be held to present the TORRENT project – Common Practices for Risk Reduction in the Management of Torrent Watersheds, developed within the Interreg Italy–Slovenia Programme. The project involves the participation of: University of Udine, Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, University of Ljubljana, […]
Start date: 18/04/2024
End date: 17/06/2026
Role: Subcontracting
Website: https://www.ita-slo.eu/it/torrent
