A chronological catalogue of sinkholes in Italy: the first step toward a real evaluation of the sinkhole hazard

Among the many different types of geological hazards affecting the Italian territory, sinkholes have often been underestimated (if not neglected entirely), and only in some sectors of the country have they been effectively considered in hazard and risk analysis. Nevertheless, sinkholes affect large parts of Italy, covering the whole territory with a variety of typologies, and exhibit both natural and anthropogenic origin. The latter clearly originate from the long history of Italy, with the complex historical vicissitudes that have characterized this territory, during which different types of artificial cavities have been realized underground for different purposes in different epochs. Over time, many of these cavities have been abandoned, and the consequent loss of memory resulted in their inclusion in newly developed parts of towns, thus creating a serious risk to the built-up environment above. Starting from these considerations, an archival research was started to collect information about the occurrence of sinkholes in Italy, with particular attention to their precise site and date of occurrence, in order to make an effort in assessing, respectively, the susceptibility and the hazard related to the particular phenomenon under study. As concerns date of occurrence, the accuracy of the information is provided (depending upon the amount of available data), with the highest quality when hour, day, month and year of occurrence are indicated, and a decrease in quality when one or more of these data are lacking. In order to be included in the database, at least some kind of temporal reference (even if general) of the sinkhole has to be known.