Reclamation landscapes. Formation and transformation of the Tronto river basin

Land reclamation landscapes are an expression of a second nature, they are territories artificially generated through land filling and drainage works, taken away from water to be cultivated and inhabited. Land reclamation in Italy is a centuries-old process based on consolidated experience, implementation of a program that uses appropriate techniques, adapted to the specificity of local contexts. It entails profound changes not only in hydraulic balances and land arrangements but also in the very forms of human settlements and social cohabitation. Investigations conducted on man-made territories have made clear the close relationship between reclamation and urbanization. Many urban settlements, and among these those of recent formation, have arisen on reclaimed territories invaded by a dusty city. The Tronto valley is taken as a case study for understanding the effects of reclamation and urbanization within a river basin. Here, as elsewhere, urbanization has not operated in a framework of complementarity with the rural reality but has rapidly supplanted it causing, among other things, the breaking of the link between reclamation and soil protection.