CAI launches the Citizen Science project to map the sources

The census and monitoring are open to those who wish to contribute

BOLOGNA – Understand how many there are and where they are located the sources present along the trail network mapped by the CAI in the Italian mountains is the objective of the new project “Spring Water”.In addition to the census, the intent is to study the variation in their water flow over time and the other fundamental parameters for their knowledge and protection, including electrical conductivity and temperature.“Acqua Sorgente” is a multi-year project by “citizen science”, with which the Italian Alpine Club, with the support of the Ministry of Tourism, intends to provide the scientific community and the entire community with a package of useful information for the protection of one of the most precious assets on the planet.

“With this 'citizen science' project, the Italian Alpine Club demonstrates the strength of its social structure,” states General President Antonio Montani.“Thanks to its over 346,000 members, in fact, the CAI is able to plan and create a complete mapping of natural mountain springs throughout the national territory, to make available to everyone the photograph of a reality which unfortunately will be subject to sudden and dramatic changes in the coming decades".

The census and monitoring will in fact be carried out thanks to the contribution of all those who want to participate in this campaign to safeguard mountain water resources, starting from the social body of the Italian Alpine Club.“We have already carried out preliminary work, collecting and putting together data from existing regional databases, obtaining the number of 117,422 sources present in mountain areas throughout Italy.“, says project coordinator Alessio Piccioli, president of the CAI trails and cartography operational structure.For the success of “Acqua Sorgente”, it is “the participation of the most frequent mountain visitors is fundamental, which can guarantee continuity of the data over time, which is essential to understand how the sources change.The simplicity and the short time needed to carry out the required operations allow monitoring to be carried out during the usual mountain excursions."

Participating in source monitoring is very simple:it will be sufficient to download and use the Cai application "App del Sentierista" for free to be able to register and monitor the position, the presence of water and, with the help of a simple water bottle, the flow rate of the springs. Those who wish can also collect data relating to electrical conductivity and temperature using the instruments provided by the CAI and available at the offices of its territorial sections. “Acqua Sorgente” was born “from the awareness that mountain territories are those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, which manifest themselves in an accentuated manner here, and from the importance of these territories for water resources on a national scale”.

2023 just passed “marked new records of increase in global temperatures, with an average annual anomaly approaching the critical threshold of 1.5 degrees established by the COP21 Paris agreements in 2015. Threshold which was exceeded in the months between August and December 2023", explains Matteo Nigro, scientific coordinator of the project.“Among the main effects of climate change on mountain areas are the accelerated melting of glaciers, the decrease in snow cover and the period of persistent snow cover, as well as the increase in drought conditions, both in terms of frequency and duration.All these changes have a negative impact on the recharge and availability of water resources in mountain areas.In this context, mountain water sources are both an effective resource for water supply and sentinels of changes in the hydrological cycle and recharge of water resources."

The data collected will be freely consultable and available to local authorities and the national and international scientific community:will allow us to acquire more information on mountain springs, the water cycle and water resources at a national level. Several potential university and research partners have already expressed their interest in the project for the in-depth scientific analysis of the data produced and for further developments in monitoring.For information and ways to participate and carry out monitoring: www.cai.it/acquasorgente/.Furthermore, on Thursday 18 April at 9pm, the CAI is organizing a webinar to present "Acqua Sorgente":to learn more about the objectives and methods of participation.