CAE MONITORING AND EARLY SYSTEM TO MITIGATE THE EFFECTS OF DEBRIS FLOW AT BORCA DI CADORE, VENETO REGION

In recent years several debris flows hit the inhabited hamlet named Cancia, in the magnificent touristic town Borca di Cadore. The issue became tragically well-known after the severe phenomena occurred on 18th July 2009, causing two casualties and damages. In order to mitigate the risk related to this natural hazard, Regione Veneto made its decision to install a monitoring and early warning system in the town.

After the intervention had been officially deliberated by Regione Veneto, the Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention (ARPAV) and other scientific institutions cooperated to release technical guidelines and identify the best solution to monitor the area and alert the population in case of emergency. Being the town within its administration, the tender to select the best supplier for this system was finally issued by the Provincial Authorities of Belluno.

CAE has been awarded the tender on 5th march 2013. On the way to develop a flexible multi-hazard monitoring system, the company undertook the challenge to become a relevant player in the field of landslide monitoring few years ago. Since then CAE successfully implemented its WSN based technology to some landslides in Calabria, making that regional Civil Protection agency an early user for this technology and gaining more and more reputation in the national market.

According to the project, this monitoring and early warning system includes 5 automatic weather stations equipped with specific sensors for debris flow detection. Installation sites are all along the main body of the landslide from the place where it originates, up on the mountain Antelao at 2.100 meters a.m.s.l., until down there in the hamlet, more than 1.000 meters below.

Among the new monitoring stations, those installed in the highest positions are necessary because of their PMB25 rain gauge, suitable for rain intensity measurement in real time, while other stations will focus on debris flow detection by mean of geophones, echometers and other sensors for land movement. The new system will be managed via redundant radio and GPRS transmission technology by a control center located in the town administrative office. In case of need the Civil Protection Secondary Center of Regione Veneto, located in Marghera, can take over the system and manage it remotely.

In case of emergency the system will activate 40 sirens and 10 traffic lights to alert the population and let them leave critical areas. Further than this, an advanced mobile messaging service is able to instantly send up to 3.600 SMS.

Either the system spreads automatically the alarm or authorities can activate it according to several scenarios, matching precipitation levels and other measurements carried out by sensors. Being these scenarios rich in details and well-articulated, authorities enjoy quite a sophisticated tool and false alarms should be limited.

After the official start of the works, dated 21st march 2013, CAE is now implementing this important system according to its well-known professional and reliable approach.