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The environmental situation of the Tiber River
The circulation of groundwater in Rome is being threatened by great transformations in natural physiographic systems completely upset by great peripheral urban settlements. Rome is supplied by springs located several hundred km’s from the city.
Local sources contribute marginally to the supply, such as the Acqua Vergine Spring and some other mineral water springs.
The groundwater quality is consistently damaged by extensive urban development, characterised by large new districts developed without respect to regulations (average dimension of thousands of inhabitants), and by the excessive quantity of wells connecting upper water tables that are often polluted with the deep water tables, which are generally non-polluted.
In about 53% of wells, E coli bacteria were found, while the percentage drops to 16% for the deepest wells (more than 100 m deep). The disposal of effluent waters from these districts, made by uncontrolled septic tanks, leads to soil pollution and leakage in the underlying water tables.
The surface waters shaped in geological areas in the roman countryside are landscapes of great value, in some parts with large agricultural flood plains, in others with narrow gorges. These create the dense hydrographical network of the tributaries of the Tiber and Aniene Rivers. The rivers and streams in Roman territory have a very variable discharge. In the case of the Tiber River, this is not only due to the characteristics of the river and its watershed, but also to the dams built upstream mainly for production of hydroelectric power, and to the water intakes from the river, mainly for irrigation, as well as from springs located in the watershed.
Some of the tributary streams of the Tiber and Aniene Rivers are completely dry during drought periods, while others have a consistent discharge during all seasons. The water intakes for different uses (agricultural, industrial, households) produced a general degradation of river ecosystems.
The hydrological network is the receptor of seventy-one public sewers, which were not previously treated by the treatment plants located in the territory of the city. The effluents brought by those sewers correspond to about 500,000 inhabitants. This fact leads to an organic pollution, characterised by the consistent presence of E coli bacteria, high values of BOD, and low values of DO. Moreover, the same water bodies collect about 1316 private sewers, surveyed by the province of Rome, which was instituted by the National Law 319/76, the law dealing with the control of water quality. During the surveys made by the province, a significant quantity of unauthorised sewers was detected.
Concerning the vulnerability of river ecosystems due to low discharges in dry periods, studies are ongoing to define criteria and methods for managing the river in such periods of minimum flow and determining a minimum standard of water quality and biological function.
There is no problem of a shortage of drinking water for the territory of the city of Rome because of the abundant resources. Nevertheless, it is necessary to diminish water consumption in order to achieve the result of sustainable water use; in fact, in the city of Rome, the per capita/per day consumption is about 450l, one of the highest in Europe.
There is a lack of good practice of water re-use, due to the quantity of available resources; it would be better to develop it in order to solve, with this type of low-quality water, the demand for non-drinkable water, such as water for the irrigation of public gardens, for industry, for representative fountains, particularly in dry seasons typical of the Mediterranean climate. The goal for water quality is to reach a given biological quality class and to respect the limitations established in the rules and regulations on aquatic life.
Tags: climate change, environment, Pollution, river, Rome, tiber, water
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