CNR-IRSA activities related to INHABIT

The RIMEDIA project, funded by the Po River Authority (Parma, Italy), is coordinated by Water Research Institute IRSA-CNR in collaboration with DISTART – Università di Bologna and  LaRIS -Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Brescia. It is aimed to asses the effect of different management strategies, included the buffer strips, on the attenuation of diffuse pollution in a specific basin called “Acque Basse Reggiane” (RE) in the Emilia Romagna region. The results of this survey represent important experimental evidence of the role and effectiveness of vegetated buffer strips along water courses belonging to the lower network of the River Po catchment. A drastic decline of NO3 from elevated values (40-200 mg/l) to less than 10 mg/l occurred within the first meters of riparian belt covered by grass. In all three experimental sites, the nitrogen  removal efficiency along the whole riparian zones (grassed + wooded) was 100%. The application of REMM (Riparian Ecosystem Management Model) demonstrated a good simulation capacity for both hydrology and chemistry.

Download a short booklet on the RIMEDIA project.

Vertical cross-sections along perpendicular transects of Bedollo (a) and Linarola (b) sites showing texture features using the clay content distribution as an index.The maximum and minimum water level depth is shown in the same profiles.	Project logo