Coastal subsidence detected by Synthetic Aperture Radar interferometry and its effects coupled with future sea-level rise: the case of the Sele Plain (Southern Italy)

The amount of coastal subsidence on the Sele River coastal plain has beenexamined and measured with local vertical land movement data. The verticaldisplacements, derived by satellite radar differential interferometry processing(Ps-InSAR), show that the analysed coastal sector is characterised by a south-eastward decrease of vertical subsidence rates. These results have been coupledwith sea-level rise (SLR) scenarios, in order to identify the most criti cal areas. Ingeneral, the subsidence mostly affects areas where alluvial deposits are thicker,the back-dune areas and the Sele River mouth, all late Holocene in age. Five localSLR scenarios allow identifying zones in the plain potentially prone to inunda-tion and the shoreline retreat for the years 2065 and 2100. For these dates, 2.2%and 7.06% of the investigated area will have a topography lower than the esti-mated future sea level. Moreover, results show that the extent of the areas poten-tially exposed to inundation and erosion increases moving from south to north.