Published by a CNR-IGG Research team the subsurface geological map of the Torino metropolitan area

The research paper, published on Journal of Maps by a team of the Torino and Pisa Units of the IGG-CNR in collaboration with researchers from the Earth Science Departments of the Torino and Pisa University, and from SMAT (Società Metropolitana Acque Torino – Centro Ricerche), includes and presents the “Subsurface geological map of the Torino area (Western Po Plain, NW Italy)”, at the scale 1:100,000. 

The new map, covering an area of about 900km², provides an original graphical illustration of the westernmost Po Plain bedrock geology below the LEP - late Early Pleistocene regional unconformity (i.e. base of late Early Pleistocene-Upper Pleistocene alluvial sediments), relying on novel detailed correlation of shallow subsurface stratigraphic data (water well and borehole logs), coherently constrained by previously published industrial seismic data.

In particular, the paper focus on the reconstruction of the Pliocene-Pleistocene subsurface stratigraphic architecture as well as on location, geometry and Plio-Pleistocene tectonic activity of the buried NW-verging “Torino Hill Front” and related folds, defining four main syn-depositional tectonic pulses during the early Piacenzian-early middle Pleistocene time span (i.e. early Piacenzian, late Piacenzian – earliest Gelasian, Gelasian – Calabrian, late Early Pleistocene-early Middle Pleistocene).

The geological map represents a new stratigraphic and structural geological base for future interdisciplinary researches, and a complementary document to better address some “challenging” practical issues related to subsurface geo-resources prediction and sustainable management (e.g. groundwater, geothermal energy) and seismic hazard assessment in the Torino urban area. In this perspective, the new presented stratigraphic and structural constraints can be of interest not only to academic researchers, but also to a broad audience of public administrations, geo-practitioners, stakeholders and non-specialists as well.

Bibliographic reference

Irace, A., Marcelli, I. Fioraso, G., Festa, A., Catanzariti, R., Raco, B., Menichini, M., Masetti, G., Brussolo, E. & Doveri, M. (2024). Subsurface geology of the Torino metropolitan area (Westernmost Po Plain, NW Italy). Journal of Maps, 20 (1), 2391963 https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2024.2391963

 For information: Andrea Irace, CNR-IGG (andrea.irace@cnr.it)