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Ground Penetrating Radar as a Functional Tool to Outline the Presence of Buried Waste: A Case Study in South Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Carmine Massarelli

    (National Research Council, Water Research Institute, Via De Blasio, 70132 Bari, Italy)

  • Claudia Campanale

    (National Research Council, Water Research Institute, Via De Blasio, 70132 Bari, Italy)

  • Vito Felice Uricchio

    (National Research Council, Water Research Institute, Via De Blasio, 70132 Bari, Italy)

Abstract

The ability of the ground penetrating radar (GPR) method as a rapid preliminary survey to detect the presence of illegally buried waste is presented in this paper. The test site is located in the countryside of “Sannicandro di Bari” (Southern Italy) and has a surface area of 1500 m 2 . A total of five parallel profiles were acquired in 2014 using a geophysical survey system instrument (GSSI) equipped with 400 and 200 MHz antennae in the monostatic configuration. Two of the five profiles were registered in a control area to compare a natural condition to a suspected waste buried zone. As a result of a processing and elaboration workflow, GPR investigations allowed us to interpret the signal qualitatively within a maximum depth of about 3 m, identifying many signal anomalies, whose characteristics can be considered typical of buried waste. The GPR response of the three profiles acquired in the suspected area showed substantial differences not found in the control’s profiles. Anomalies related to the presence of intense scattering, of dome structures not attributable to cavities, but rather to a flattening and compacting of different layers, therefore, less electrically conductive, were identified in the suspected area. The interpretation of the results obtained by the GPR profiles was confirmed by excavations carried out with bulldozers. Large quantities of solid waste illegally buried (e.g., waste deriving from construction and demolition activities, bituminous mixtures, discarded tires, glass, plastic, municipal waste) were revealed in all the sites where anomalies and non-conformities appeared compared to the control natural soil.

Suggested Citation

  • Carmine Massarelli & Claudia Campanale & Vito Felice Uricchio, 2021. "Ground Penetrating Radar as a Functional Tool to Outline the Presence of Buried Waste: A Case Study in South Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-18, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:7:p:3805-:d:526658
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Maria Silvia Binetti & Claudia Campanale & Vito Felice Uricchio & Carmine Massarelli, 2023. "In-Depth Monitoring of Anthropic Activities in the Puglia Region: What Is the Acceptable Compromise between Economic Activities and Environmental Protection?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-16, May.
    2. Yi Xu & Naseer Muhammad Khan & Hafeezur Rehman & Sajjad Hussain & Rana Muhammad Asad Khan & Muhammad Zaka Emad & Kewang Cao & Mohd Hazizan Bin Mohd Hashim & Saad S. Alarifi & Ruoyu Cui & Xinci Li, 2022. "Research on Leakage Detection at the Joints of Diaphragm Walls of Foundation Pits Based on Ground Penetrating Radar," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-21, December.

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