Combined Analysis of Socioeconomic Vulnerability and Flood Hazard in the Urban Contexts of Southern Italy

Isabella Lapietra, University of Bari (It)
Thaís García Pereiro, Università degli Studi di Bari
Federico Benassi, University of Naples Federico II
Pierfrancesco Dellino, University of Bari
Anna Paterno, University of Bari

The evolution of hazards into disasters is due to the impact that natural events have on structures, infrastructures and population. Since natural and social dynamics depends upon several spatial and temporal factors, the interaction between natural hazards and the socioeconomic environment is a challenging aspect of disaster studies. A multidisciplinary approach, consisting in the quantification and mapping of socioeconomic vulnerability and natural hazard, could be useful to highlight the most affected areas and to provide instruments for risk reduction. With this purpose, this study combines the dimensions of socioeconomic vulnerability with flood hazard at the suburban scale, across three different urban contexts (capitals of the metropolitan cities of Bari, Napoli and Reggio Calabria) in Southern Italy (Puglia, Campania and Calabria, respectively) by using data provided by national open-source platforms. Following a local spatial approach at the submunicipality level, the analysis looks at the intertwining between the spatial dimensions and the degrees of potential vulnerability and flood hazard by means of a Geographic Information System (GIS). Results could be useful to inform knowledge-based risk-reduction policies (s.c. place-based policies) and provide specific strategies based upon the degree of socioeconomic vulnerability population’s subgroups.

Keywords: Population, Environment, and Climate Change, Spatial Demography, Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

See extended abstract.