A team of researchers from CNR, ENEA and the Universities of Cagliari and Sassari has developed an innovative model to understand marine circulation, particularly of the Mediterranean, and identify the causes of coastal erosion and the evolution of beaches, including that of Stintino in Sardinia. News of the new model, contained in the study published in a special volume of the international journal Geological Society Publications, was released on the eve of European Sea Day to raise awareness of the vital role of oceans and seas in the global ecosystem. The study on straits and coastal areas focused on the Mediterranean Sea as a region representative of what is happening on a global scale, where climate change impacts with amplified effects. In particular, the Asinelli Strait was investigated, which separates the sea of Sardinia from the Asinara Gulf, whose seafloor is characterized by a complex and intertwined distribution of rocks, sand, Posidonia oceanica seagrass beds and changing underwater dune systems. Specifically, the study of the circulation of currents has revealed the cause of the erosion of the Stintino beach (La Pelosa), in front of the strait, which has been increasingly affected by the effects of climate change and, in the last 30 years, by increasing erosion: its extent and shape basically vary according to sea level rise, the underwater Posidonia prairie, but also the wind regime. The latter can generate the loss of sand from the beach when grains are carried westward, toward a gully that causes them to be deposited at depths of 15 to 30 meters, from where they are then unable to rise again. Thanks to this methodological approach, the researchers have reconstructed the 'evolutionary history' of this very special environment and will be able to contribute to the environmental upgrading of Stintino's beach-dune system.
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