Geology of Mar Piccolo, Taranto (southern Italy): the physical basis for remediation of a polluted marine area

Abstract

Four 1:15,000 maps for the coastal area of Mar Piccolo (Taranto, southern Italy) are presented.
\nThe study area is a small, sheltered shallow marine basin of about 20 km2, located north of
\nTaranto town. It contains some submarine, karstic freshwater springs (citri) that have
\ndetermined the development of intensive aquaculture in the past. Now, the Mar Piccolo is a
\nhighly polluted area due to the presence of both military and industrial navy docks and
\nvarious heavy industries located in proximal areas: (i) the ILVA steel plant in Taranto, the
\nlargest in Europe; (ii) the ENI oil refinery and (iii) the CEMENTIR, the largest cement and
\nconcrete plant in southern Italy. Many studies show that water and sediments are
\ncontaminated (heavy metals, isopropyl alcohol, polychlorinated biphenyl [PCB], etc.), and
\nvarious remediation projects are now in preparation. In this study, we analyze the physical
\ncharacteristics of the Mar Piccolo environment by producing several maps: a geological
\nmap; a geomorphological map; a bathy-morphological map and a map of the thickness of
\nsurficial sediment. All these maps are original products focused on the realization of a
\nreliable geological picture for the Mar Piccolo area. They represent the first steps toward the
\ndetailed knowledge of the Mar Piccolo physical environment, which we consider to be a
\nfundamental requirement for developing the most appropriate remediation techniques.