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Hydrology and conservation of the territory
Module HYDROLOGY OF RIVER BASINS

Academic Year 2025/2026 - Teacher: GIUSEPPE LONGO MINNOLO

Expected Learning Outcomes

It is expected that the students of the Basin Hydrology course, at the end of the lessons, know the characteristics of a hydrographic basin and know how to conduct a hydrological study, using GIS supports.

- Knowledge and understanding: students at the end of the course will be able to carry out a hydrological study concerning the analysis of intense rainfall and their spatialisation
- Ability to apply knowledge and understanding: students will understand the processes that regulate the water balance of a river basin and will apply their knowledge on the territory using spatial analysis tools
- Autonomy of judgment: the lessons, full of application examples, will be useful for students to self-evaluate the project work that will be assigned to them
- Communication skills: will be assessed during the oral test
- Learning ability: will be assessed through ongoing and final tests.

Course Structure

​Teaching includes lectures and exercises. The latter are related to the preparation of a hydrological study.

As a guarantee of equal opportunities and in compliance with current laws, interested students can ask for a personal interview in order to plan any compensatory and/or dispensatory measures, based on their specific needs and on teaching objectives of the discipline. 
It is also possible to ask the departmental contacts of CInAP (Center for Active and Participatory Integration - Services for Disabilities and/or DSAs), in the persons of professor Anna De Angelis.

Required Prerequisites

Knowledge of Mathematics and Hydraulics are required (not preparatory)

Attendance of Lessons

Not mandatory but strongly recommended. Attendance is recorded only for statistical and evaluation purposes
of the course

Detailed Course Content

Regulatory and institutional framework: Main regulatory references at European and national level on basin hydrology. Basin Plan for the Hydrogeological Structure of the Region of Sicily

Basin hydrology: Definition of river basin and general characteristics. Hydrological cycle and balance, inflow-outflow transformation. Rainfall measurement and spatial distribution of rainfall. Evapotranspiration and methods of measurement/estimation. Introduction to satellite remote sensing.

Soil hydrology: Soil: structure and physical properties. Soil Water content and water potential. Water retention curve and hydrological constants.

Statistical analysis of hydrological variables: Statistical analysis of maximum intensity precipitation. Return period. Rainfall probability curves and Gumbel distribution. Assessment of rainfall events.

Assessment of flood flows: Direct and indirect methods for estimating flood flows of a given return period.

Textbook Information

1. McGraw-Hill, 2013

Idraulica e Idrologia per le scienze agrarie, ambientali e forestali

Vito ferro

2. Hoepli, 2010

Conducibilità idraulica del suolo

Bagarello e Iovino

3. Edagricole Università & Formazione, 2015

L’acqua in agricoltura

Marcello Mastrorilli

4. Dipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente

Dispense distribuite durante il corso

Consoli Simona, Giuseppe Longo Minnolo

Learning Assessment

Learning Assessment Procedures

Students attending the course will take two written tests, the first at the end of the hydrological study, the second (at the end of the lessons) will deal with the remaining part of the program.
Students who do not pass (that is, they will have obtained a grade of less than 18/30) the test will have to sit
the oral exam (of the whole module or only part of it, depending on whether or not one of the two tests has been passed).
The written test will take place exclusively in the manner described above; all the others

exam sessions for the module will only include an oral interview.

Votes will be attributed according to the following scheme
 
Use of references: Has deepened the topics
 
30-30L
 
Knowledge and understanding of topic: Excellent knowledge
 
Ability to analyze and synthesize: Has considerable ability to analyze and synthesize.
 
Use of references: Important insights.
 
Drafting design drawings of an infrastructure. The project must be endorsed in advance by the lecturer. Interview.
Evaluation of the student will be based on the following criteria: ability to learn and level of depth of the topics covered, property of synthesis and exposition, and the student's ability to reason.
Votes will be attributed according to the following scheme:
Unsuitable
Knowledge and understanding of the topic: Significant shortcoming and inaccuracies
Analysis and synthesis skills: Irrelevant. Frequent generalizations. Inability to synthesize
Use of references: Completely inappropriate
18-20
Knowledge and understanding of the topic: At threshold level. Obvious imperfections
Analysis and synthesis skills: Barely sufficient ability
Use of references: Barely appropriate
21-23
Knowledge and understanding of the topic: Routine knowledge 
Analysis and synthesis skills: Is able to analyze and synthesize correctly. Argues logically and coherently
Use of references: Uses standard references
24-26
Knowledge and understanding of the topic: Good knowledge
Analysis and synthesis skills: Has good analysis and synthesis skills. Topics are expressed consistently
Use of references: Uses standard references
27-29
Knowledge and understanding of the topic: Knowledge more than good
Analytical and synthesis skills: Has considerable analytical and synthesis skills
Use of references: Has deepened the topics
30-30L
Knowledge and understanding of the topic: Excellent knowledge
Analytical and synthesis skills: Has considerable ability to analyze and synthesize.
Use of references: Important insights.

Examples of frequently asked questions and / or exercises

Methods of areal evaluation of the variable precipitation;
Meaning of soil water retention;
Determination of the pluviometric probability curve;
Rational method for determining the flood discharge of a basin.