Integrated geophysical investigations for Calcione dam safety evaluation

An integrated geophysical field investigations have been carried out at the Calcione earthen dam near Lucignano town (Arezzo, Italy), for the purpose of better understanding the hydrogeological conditions at the site. In winter 2002, the Calcione dam embankment has been affected by some landslides and a gabions drainage system was installed to mitigate the phenomena. Therefore, the purpose of the geophysical investigation has been to identify the presence of eventually seepage areas through the embankment materials and provide information about subsurface water circulation. These tasks have been accomplished through the use of self-potentials (SP), electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and ground penetrating radar (GPR). The results obtained allowed to identify an area of interest in correspondence of the central area of the dam above the installed gabions drainage system. Moreover, future efforts will focus on an integrated hydrogeophysical interpretation, where geophysical data will be directly incorporated into the dynamic estimation of hydrogeological parameters.