Acqua, realizzati lavori per 70 milioni su otto dighe del Mezzogiorno

The "Extraordinary Plan for Water" in the Southern Appennine water district is nearing completion, with a budget of 70 million euros spent over six years. The project's main focus is improving the efficiency of eight large dams, increasing their storage capacity by about 300 million cubic meters annually, and creating connections between southern Italy's water systems to ensure they communicate and serve water where it is scarce.

The initiative addresses structural issues such as low storage capacity, insecurity of embankments, and underutilized networks, which can cause severe water problems for citizens, businesses, and agriculture during droughts and climate change. The completed project will provide greater water storage, making water systems more resilient to shortages and reducing the risk of rationing.

The new Commissioner General of the Southern Appennine District, Vera Corbelli, will be responsible for making the system more efficient by optimizing the ex-Eipli, the Ente per lo sviluppo dell'Irrigazione e la trasformazione fondiaria in Puglia, Lucania e Irpinia, and transforming it into Acque del Sud Spa. The Commissioner's goal is to restore the storage volume of the entire system, consisting of dams and large water supply networks of the Ofanto, Basento-Bradano, and Ionian-Sinib rivers.

The project, which will become operational in 2021 after the Covid pandemic, will complete the construction of all eight dams, seismic reinforcement, and testing by 2027. The increased storage capacity of 300 million cubic meters annually means that enough water will be available to supply over 4 million people consuming 200 liters of water per day annually.

The Commissioner's plan also includes designing additional connections between the water systems in the district to enhance resilience and allow water transfers between regions.