SMC Special Issue N.06 2021 | PRESENTATION

Preserving the terraces of UNESCO’s Amalfi Coast Cultural Landscape is a highly topical issue, not only for people living in this area, but for the entire scientific and cultural world, as the hydrogeological fragility of the coastline risks leading to the loss of a unique heritage, threatened by recent climatic changes and inevitable economic and social transformations. The CITTAM interdepartmental research centre is dedicated to the study of traditional techniques in the Mediterranean area and, in recent years, the problem of maintaining the terraces of the Amalfi Coast has become an objective of our interdisciplinary research on rural landscapes, following the more frequent collapses and landslides, which often interrupt public roads. Considering that this is a hilly area, sloping steeply down towards the sea, with great interest for tourists because of this exceptional quality of landscape, it is essential that the roads remain clear to avoid increasing the problems for the agricultural economy and for inhabitants’ daily lives. Unfortunately, in recent years, extraordinary meteorological events have intensified, partly due to climate change, and the incessant rainfall, concentrated in a few hours, has seriously damaged the plots of land, which are often abandoned or poorly maintained resulting in a lack of vegetation that would contribute to water absorption. The terracing system on the Amalfi coast is a complex system of dry stone walls – màcere in the local language – and the land behind them, maintained by these stones, on which crops were grown; if farming is abandoned and the soils of the plots are no longer cultivated, it is clear that extraordinary rainfall, falling on arid land, becomes a problem. A solution to the problem of terracing must obviously be sought with a multidisciplinary approach, and CITTAM has the skills and potential to deal with this issue, since the interdepartmental research centre includes experts in geology, hydraulics, construction techniques, etc., as well as experts in the field of soil conservation.
Actually, CITTAM’s encouragement came from the territory itself, some time ago. The latest landslide episode in February accelerated the promotion of the first meeting, even if remotely with a webinar, held on 26 March. […]