CAVES BELOW QUARRIES AND QUARRIES ABOVE CAVES: PROBLEMS, HAZARD AND RESEARCH. A CASE STUDY FROM SOUTHERN ITALY

In karst environments, quarrying activity is definitely among the human actions causing the worst impacts to the natural setting. Quarries, both at the surface and underground, can easily intercept natural caves, and destroy them partially or totally. In addition to direct impact on the caves, severe damage to the karst ecosystem have also to be registered, locally resulting in endangering very rare species. Reaching a balance between the need to carry out quarrying activity and the safeguard of the karst environment is not an easy task; worldwide, several experiences have shown the difficulty in having a “peaceful” cohabitation between caves and quarries. Legislation is often absent, or, when present, it is actually only on paper, whilst the real enforcement of codes and rules is rarely pursued.

This paper deals with an interesting case study in one of the most well known karst area of southern Italy, where in the Minervino Murge territory (Apulia) a large quarry destroyed several tens-of-meters deep caves. Notwithstanding the efforts by cavers to explore the caves, aimed at documenting and safeguarding such precious subterranean karst landforms, the quarry kept working for many years until in 2005 an inquiry was conducted at the site. Following the end of the quarrying activities, it was eventually possible to fully document the karst values of the area, which presents at least six caves of great interest for reconstructing the karst history of this sector of Apulia. The surveyed caves are described in the paper, which also offers an analysis of the evolution of the quarrying activity and the deriving impacts to the karst environment, an account of the several phases of development of the research, and description of the difficulties encountered. Eventually, some considerations are presented about the efficiency and enforcement of existing laws and codes dealing with caves in Apulia region.