This book describes the water sector as it is structured in Italy. The first part describes the legal framework which rules the sector in Italy, its evolution since the last 20 years, and its weaknesses. The second part describes the governance of Italian water utilities, distinguishing full public-owned companies from public-private partnership and private companies. The third part reports insights on water utilities performance to enquire the presence of economies by scope, scale and density in the Italian water sector, and to verify the presence of any differences in terms of efficiency and tariffs among public and private firms. The fourth part describes the investment policies carried out by water utilities, observing the total amount of per capita investments and the actual realization of planned investments. The fifth part describes if and how utilities applied water conservation practices to incentive the sustainable water use.

This book offers a comprehensive framework of the current state of water resources in Italy and of the main stages of the evolutionary way in the last decades for achieving an integrated, sustainable and equitable water resources management. The main paradigms of water resources development are identified as: i) engineering and economic approach to water resources exploitation, ii) focus on pollution control and water-excess management, iii) a comprehensive approach toward a sustainable and equitable distribution of resources and effective risk reduction of water-related disasters. After a section devoted to the analysis of some historic stages in the legislation framework and the governance of water and soil, with particular reference to planning, design, building and operation of water systems, two sections deal with the estimation of water resources availability on national territory and estimation of water demands in municipal, agricultural, industrial, ecosystem sectors. The complex problems that the Italian society has to solve in the water field and the main challenges of a changing world are discussed in the fourth section of the volume. The book will not only be useful for water professionals, but also for citizen who like to discern the key factors which delay the recognition of water as a resource for life. The description of the problems and adopted solutions could also serve as a guideline for similar situations encountered in other countries, improving the preparation of the responsible people.

This book provides the first comprehensive overview of the most important water-related issues that centre on Italy, analysed from several disciplinary perspectives – such as hydrology, economics, law, sociology, environmental sciences and policy studies – in order to promote full understanding of the challenges the country is facing and the ways it could best tackle them. Despite the misconception that Italy is a water-scarce country, is in fact quite rich in water resources. Such resources, however, are unevenly distributed over the Italian territory. Italy’s northern regions rely on quite an abundant quantity of freshwater, whereas in the southern area water endowment is limited. Moreover, climatic differences between North and South contribute to widen the divide. This disparity has notable consequences of socio-economic character, some of which, in turn, feed back into the environmental conditions of Italian regions: pollution, floods, landslides and droughts are among the problems affecting the country. There are numerous features of water use and consumption that distinguish Italy from other comparable countries, such as the significant role played by agriculture (a water-intensive activity), a lead position in the consumption of bottled water, lower-than-average prices of water and a far-from-optimal efficiency of waterworks. All such aspects, and many others, make Italy an essential case study.

This book offers a comprehensive framework of the current state of water resources in Italy and of the main stages of the evolutionary way in the last decades for achieving an integrated, sustainable and equitable water resources management. The main paradigms of water resources development are identified as: i) engineering and economic approach to water resources exploitation, ii) focus on pollution control and water-excess management, iii) a comprehensive approach toward a sustainable and equitable distribution of resources and effective risk reduction of water-related disasters. After a section devoted to the analysis of some historic stages in the legislation framework and the governance of water and soil, with particular reference to planning, design, building and operation of water systems, two sections deal with the estimation of water resources availability on national territory and estimation of water demands in municipal, agricultural, industrial, ecosystem sectors. The complex problems that the Italian society has to solve in the water field and the main challenges of a changing world are discussed in the fourth section of the volume. The book will not only be useful for water professionals, but also for citizen who like to discern the key factors which delay the recognition of water as a resource for life. The description of the problems and adopted solutions could also serve as a guideline for similar situations encountered in other countries, improving the preparation of the responsible people.

A discussion of the relationship between people and water in medieval Italy, first published in 1998.

A fundamental natural resource, water and its use not only reflect "modes of production" but also that complex interplay between resources and their exploitation (and domination) by various social agents, who in their turn are inevitably influenced by the abundance or rarity of water supplies. Focusing on scientific, social and economic issues from the 16th to the 19th century, the author, one of Italy's leading historians in this field, looks at the innumerable conflicts that arose over water resources and the environmental impact of projects intended to control them. Venice and Holland are undoubtedly the two most fascinating cases of societies "built on water," with the conquest of vast expanses of marshland - either inland or on the coast (the Dutch polders or the Venetian lagoon) – not only stimulating agricultural production, but also nurturing a deeply-felt relationship between the local populations and the element of water itself. The author rounds off his study by looking at the influence the hydraulic technology developed in Holland would have on many European countries (France, England and Germany in particular) and at questions raised by contemporaries about the environmental impact of agricultural progress and its effects upon the social-economic equilibria within the communities concerned.

From the second half of the 1940s, when postwar reconstruction began in Italy, there were three notable driving forces of environmental change: the uncontrollable process of urban drift, fueled by considerable migratory flows from the countryside and southern regions toward the cities where large-scale productive activities were beginning to amass; unruly industrial development, which was tolerated since it was seen as the necessary tribute to be paid to progress and modernization; and mass consumption. In his fourth book, Federico Paolini presents a series of essays ranging from the uses of natural resources, to environmental problems caused by means of transport, to issues concerning environmental politics and the dynamics of the environment movement. Paolini concludes the book with a forecast about the environmental problems that will emerge in the public debate of the twenty-first century.

The Romans developed sophisticated methods for managing hygiene, including aqueducts for moving water from one place to another, sewers for removing used water from baths and runoff from walkways and roads, and public and private latrines. Through the archeological record, graffiti, sanitation-related paintings, and literature, Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow explores this little-known world of bathrooms and sewers, offering unique insights into Roman sanitation, engineering, urban planning and development, hygiene, and public health. Focusing on the cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Ostia, and Rome, Koloski-Ostrow's work challenges common perceptions of Romans' social customs, beliefs about health, tolerance for filth in their cities, and attitudes toward privacy. In charting the complex history of sanitary customs from the late republic to the early empire, Koloski-Ostrow reveals the origins of waste removal technologies and their implications for urban health, past and present.

This book describes the water sector as it is structured in Italy, presenting innovative engineering, financial and managerial solutions implemented by the Italian water sector, through the experiences of its major stakeholders. The main themes addressed include water regulation, financing infrastructures, economic performance of the leading companies, abstraction, potabilization, distribution, treatment and purification technologies, energy production, and organizational restructuring. The last part of the work presents company profiles with important financial indicators, as well as future strategic postures. Written by leading Italian experts, the book reflects the remarkable advances that have been made in the field of water governance and environmental management. The book is especially valuable for researchers, water professionals, utility managers, as well as policy makers and foreign investors looking for opportunities. This work has been prepared as part of the research activities of the Observatory on Sustainable Water Industry, one of Agici’s Research and Advisory units.

The book provides an overview of climate change-sensitive water resources management with consideration of adaptation approaches, the assessment of climate change impacts, current contemporary management techniques, and ecological responses. Comprehensive assessments and studies from eight countries using innovative approaches that aid water management under evolving climates are documented. Topics ranging from hydrologic design to management and policy responses to climate change are discussed, which demonstrate updated theories that highlight methods, tools, and experiences on the topic of water resources under climate change. The generic approaches discussed, and their applications to different climate change-related problems, make this book appealing to a global readership. The practical and applied methodologies presented in the book and through insightful case studies discussed will provide readers worldwide with ready-to-use information to manage water resources sustainably under evolving climate. This book is ideally suited for water resource managers, scientists, professionals from water management agencies, graduate students, and national laboratory agencies responsible for water and environmental management.