Skip to main content
Log in

First survey on the occurrence of chlorinated solvents in groundwater of eastern sector of Rome

  • Foreseeing Groundwater Resources
  • Published:
Rendiconti Lincei. Scienze Fisiche e Naturali Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Groundwater pollution by chlorinated compounds is one of the most common environmental issues affecting urban areas, especially for those with a huge industrial vocation. Even if Rome is not an industrial city, this kind of contamination has been recently started to be detected in the groundwater. In order to better evaluate the presence and distribution of chlorinated solvents in groundwater in the eastern sector of Rome, a sampling survey in the monitoring network of the city has been conducted. First preliminary results, deriving from samples collected in wells mainly located in public green areas in a previous investigation survey, seem to show how the species tetrachloroethylene, trichlorethylene and all their degradation pathway can be associated more with point source of contamination with locally very high concentration values. On the contrary, the detection of trichloromethane and 1,1,2-trichloroethane, which have been found in the new data collection at low concentration in several of the investigated wells, could suggest a diffuse occurrence of these compounds. Unfortunately, even if the presented results represent a good starting point for further evaluations, the preliminary status of this research cannot allow to clearly understand the source of contamination and declare the possible diffusion of these two compounds.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • ACEA ATO2 (Water Supply Company of Rome) (2018) Sospesi i prelievi dal lago di bracciano da circa 8 mesi (Witdrawals from Bracciano Lake Suspended since 8 months), Press Release 30/3/2018

  • Alberti L, Colombo L, Formentin G (2017) A comparison between two stochastic approaches to assess groundwater PCE diffuse pollution in Milano functional urban area. In: Proceedings of flowpath 2017 national meeting on hydrogeology, Cagliari

  • APHA, Awwa, WEF (2012) Standard methods for examination of water and wastewater, vol 22. American Public Health Association, Washington, p 1360

    Google Scholar 

  • Balderacchi M, Filippini M, Gemitzi A, Klöve B, Petitta M, Trevisan M, Wachniew P, Witczak S, Gargini A (2014) Does groundwater protection in Europe require new EU-wide environmental quality standards. Front Chem. https://doi.org/10.3389/fchem.2014.00032

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beretta GP, Avanzini M, Marangoni T, Burini M, Schirò G, Terrenghi J, Vacca G (2018) Groundwater modeling of the withdrawal sustainability of Cannara artesian aquifer (Umbria, Italy). Acque Sotterr It J Groundw 7(3):47–60. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-2018-333

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bonfà I, La Vigna F, Martelli S, Ticconi L (2017) Environmental issues due to organohalogenated compounds diffuse pollution in groundwater. Emerging issue in the Roman area? It J Groundw 6:2/148. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-2017-280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bradbury KR, Gotkowitz MB, Hart DJ, Eaton TT, Cherry JA, Parker BL, Borchardt MA (2007) Contaminant transport through aquitards: technical guidance for aquitard assessment. Report 91133B. American Water Works Research Foundation, Denver, p 170

    Google Scholar 

  • Busoni S, Gnocchi A (2013) Problematiche nella contaminazione delle falde da solventi clorurati. Esperienze in Provincia di Treviso. La bonifica dei siti contaminati in Regione del Veneto. Padova, 22 Marzo 2013

  • Colombo L (2017) Statistical methods and transport modeling to assess PCE hotspots and diffuse pollution in groundwater (Milan FUA). Acque Sotterr It J Groundw. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-2017-301

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conti N, Salvadori R, Aiello M (2014) Dewatering e bonifica dell’ area ˝ex Whitehead Motofides” (Pisa, Italia). Acque Sotterr It J Groundw. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-093-14-0120

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellis B (1999) Impacts of urban growth on surface water and groundwater quality. IAHS No. 259, IAHS, Wallingford, UK, 437 pp

  • Ellis JB, Revitt DM (2002) Sewer losses and interactions with groundwater quality. Water Sci Technol 45(3):195–202. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2002.0079

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fan X, Sokorai KJ (2015) Formation of trichloromethane in chlorinated water and fresh-cut produce and as a result of reaction with citric acid. Postharvest Biol Technol 109:65–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.postharvbio.2015.06.009

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Filippini M (2017) Migration of chlorinated hydrocarbons in multilayer unconsolidated porous media: a case study from the Po Plain, Italy. Acque Sotter It J Groundw. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-2017-305

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guzzella L, Salerno F, Ravelli S, D’ambrosio G (2009) Lo stato qualitativo dei corpi idrici sotterranei in Provincia Di Milano: Rapporto Finale. Rapporto Di Ricerca Irsa-Cnr/Provincia Di Milano-107 PP., Brugherio, Milano-Ed. IRSA-CNR

  • Howard KWF (2002) Urban groundwater issues an introduction. Current problems of hydrogeology in urban areas, urban agglomerates and industrial centres. Springer, Dordrecht

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • La Vigna F, Mazza R (eds) (2015) Carta Idrogeologica di Roma: hydrogeological map of Rome scala/scale 1:50.000. Roma Capitale

  • La Vigna F, Bonfà I, Martelli S (2014) La determinazione dei valori di fondo naturale ed antropico nelle acque sotterranee dei grandi agglomerati urbani. Acque Sotterr It J Groundw 3:2/136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2017.01.044

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • La Vigna F, Bonfà I, Martelli S (2015) The groundwater monitoring network of Rome. AQUA2015 Hydrogeology back to the future! 42° IAH Congress, Rome 13–18 September

  • Luberti GM, Marra F, Florindo F (2017) A review of the stratigraphy of Rome (Italy) according to geochronologically and paleomagnetically constrained aggradational successions, glacio-eustatic forcing and volcano-tectonic processes. Q Int. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2017.01.044

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Menichetti S, Doni A (2017) Organohalogen diffuse contamination in Firenze and Prato groundwater bodies Investigative monitoring and definition of background values. Acque Sotterr It J Groundw 6:1/147. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-2017-260

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munson AE, Sain LE, Sanders VM, Kauffmann BM, White KL, Page DG, Borzelleca JF (1982) Toxicology of organic drinking water contaminants: trichloromethane, bromodichloromethane, dibromochloromethane and tribromomethane. Environ Health Perspect 46:117–126

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nigro A, Sappa G, Barbieri M (2016) Application of boron and tritium isotopes for tracing landfill contamination in groundwater. J Geochem Explor 172:101–108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gexplo.2016.10.011

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pankow JF, Cherry JA (1996) Dense chlorinated solvents and other DNAPLs in groundwater. Waterloo Press, Waterloo

    Google Scholar 

  • Pedretti D, Masetti M, Beretta GP, Vitiello M (2013) A revised conceptual model to reproduce the distribution of chlorinated solvents in the Rho Aquifer (Italy). Groundw Monit R 33:69–77. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwmr.12017

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petitta M, Pacioni E, Sbarbati C, Corvatta G, Fanelli M, Aravena R (2013) Hydrodynamic and isotopic characterization of a site contaminated by chlorinated solvents: Chienti River Valley, central Italy. Appl Geochem 32:164–174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2012.09.012

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Preziosi E, Giuliano G, Vivona R (2009) Natural background levels and threshold values derivation for naturally As, V and F rich groundwater bodies: a methodological case study in Central Italy. Environ Earth Sci. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-009-0404-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shen C, Norris P, Williams O, Hagan S, Li K (2016) Generation of chlorine by-products in simulated wash water. Food Chem 190:97–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2015.04.146

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vanzetti C, Gianoglio N, Sesia E (2016) Studio sulla contaminazione diffusa da solventi clorurati nelle acque sotterranee. Struttura Specialistica Qualità delle Acque. Arpa Piemonte, Piemonte

    Google Scholar 

  • Verdini R, Majone M (2015) Presenza e comportamento dei Solventi Clorurati. In: Pinna P, Riva M (ed) Analisi e promozione di nuove tecnologie di bonifica e di caratterizzazione dei siti contaminati, Éupolis Lombardia CODICE: TER 13010/001

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to F. La Vigna.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

La Vigna, F., Sbarbati, C., Bonfà, I. et al. First survey on the occurrence of chlorinated solvents in groundwater of eastern sector of Rome. Rend. Fis. Acc. Lincei 30, 297–306 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12210-019-00790-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12210-019-00790-z

Keywords

Navigation