La lettura geologica del paesaggio delle Serre: i processi evolutivi, dalla genesi sino alle forme attuali: conoscere per valorizzare

The Serre correspond to a series of ridges with tabular tops, elongated in a NNW – SSE direction, with a more developed south-western flank, made up of Upper Cretaceous carbonate formations that characterize the Salento landscape. The Serre constitute structural highs (horsts) delimited by normal faults that lower the adjacent blocks, giving rise to tectonic depressions (grabens) which over geological times have been progressively partially filled by the products of the most recent sedimentations of the Paleogene, Neogene and Quaternary. The carbonate nature of the rocks that constitute the ridges, the tectonic and stratigraphic structure, the geological processes that have occurred over time have given rise to a wide variety of forms that uniquely characterize the landscape of the Serre. Among these forms we have the case study of the Spiggiani sinkhole (Salve). The Spiggiani site is the first example of recovery of a sinkhole in Salento for tourism and information purposes on geodiversity and biodiversity. This recovery takes on even more exceptional value and becomes unique in the regional panorama if compared to the history of the geomorphological component, violated over the years with authorized interventions to carry out quarrying activities and as a waste disposal site and which, instead, following safety measures and reclamation, specifically identified, experiences a real environmental recovery aimed at creating social and cultural value.