ABSTRACT
The construction of reservoirs, started in the fifties, has recently increased in Italy in view of the ever growing need for water for irrigation purposes. This increase is also caused by the publicity and financial support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, especially for hilly reservoirs.
The value for agriculture of such water storage reservoirs has been proved. Unfortunately severe siltation has occurred in a few cases, with considerable damage for farm and community economies. The siltation is mainly due to a lack of methods and to the inadequacy of existing models for sediment yield predictions in the project phase.
Through a field survey of sedimentation in three small reservoirs in central Italy, data were obtained and existing provisional models were tested. Various other data on sedimentation in 9 reservoirs all over Italy were collected from literature. Through the use of multiple regression techniques, sediment deposition was expressed as a function of measured reservoir and watershed variables.
The scope of the research was developing a model for sedimentation prediction, based on morpho-physiographic and climatic characteristics which are very easy to be obtained by planners. Although more observations are considered to be needed, the model obtained may be considered applicable over a wide range of conditions, and being a first effective tool in the project phase.
