Marco Borga

University of Padova | UNIPD · Department of Land, Environment, Agriculture and Forestry TESAF

Megafloods that far exceed previously observed records often take citizens and experts by surprise, resulting in extremely severe damage and loss of life. Existing methods based on local and regional information rarely go beyond national borders and cannot predict these floods well because of limited data on megafloods, and because flood generation...

Soil water content (SWC) is a fundamental variable involved in several hydrological processes governing catchment functioning. Comparative analysis of hydrological processes in different catchments based on SWC data is therefore beneficial to infer driving factors of catchment response. Here, we explored the use of high‐temporal resolution SWC data...

This study aims to evaluate the potential of ERA5 precipitation and temperature reanalysis for snow water equivalent (SWE) simulation by considering the role of catchment spatial scale in controlling the errors obtained by comparison with corresponding SWE simulations from ground stations. This is obtained by exploiting a semi-distributed snowpack...

This study evaluated the potential of ERA5 reanalysis as a reference dataset for snow water equivalent (SWE) modeling in 16 Alpine basins of varying catchment sizes using the semi-distributed snow model (TOPMELT) in the Upper Adige river basin in the Eastern Italian Alps. The study aimed to identify errors in ERA5 meteorological variables and asses...

Sub-daily extreme precipitation can generate fast hydro-geomorphic hazards such as flash floods and debris flows, which cause fatalities and damages especially in mountainous regions. Reliable projections of extreme future precipitation is fundamental for risk management and adaptation strategies. Convection-permitting climate models (CPMs) esplici...

Estimating future short-duration extreme precipitation in mountainous regions is fundamental for risk management. High-resolution convection-permitting models (CPMs) represent the state of the art for these projections, as they resolve convective processes that are key to short-duration extremes. Recent observational studies reported a decrease in...

While most of renewable integration studies rely on indicators that are integrated in time, little is known about the statistical properties of the electricity supply deficit periods. This study investigates the frequency and intensity of the electricity supply deficit using the Complete-Time-Analysis (CTA), an approach that allows assessing recurr...

Estimating future short-duration extreme precipitation in mountainous regions is fundamental for risk management. High-resolution convection-permitting models (CPMs) represent the state-of-the-art for these projections as they resolve convective processes key to short-duration extremes. Recent studies reported a decrease in the intensity of extreme...

Rainfall‐runoff event types can be used to better understand the hydrological functioning of catchments. In this study, we propose a framework to characterise and classify runoff events relying on the hysteresis analysis of the relation between streamflow (independent variable) and depth to water table (dependent variable). We evaluated hysteresis...

Recent tracer-based studies using stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen showed that different methods for extracting water from plant tissues can return different isotopic compositions due to the presence of organic compounds and because they extract different plant water domains. One of the most used methods to extract plant water is the cryogeni...

Understanding past changes in precipitation extremes could help us predict their future dynamics. We present a novel approach for analyzing trends in extremes and attributing them to changes in the local precipitation regime. The approach relies on the separation between intensity and occurrence of storms. We examine the relevant case of the Easter...

In mountain environments, the coupling of hillslopes processes with the channel network during extreme events is of great importance for rivers dynamics, as debris flows and landslides are among the most important sources of sediments. The Stolla Creek (40 km² drainage area, South Tyrol, Italy) is a confined and partly confined mountain channel tha...

The mismatch between the space-time scales of flash flood occurrence and those of the typical hydro-meteorological monitoring networks has stimulated the development of forensic flash flood analysis, which involves post-flood indirect peak discharge estimation in ungauged channels and flood response modelling driven by weather-radar rainfall estima...

Vulnerability analysis is crucial to assess natural hazard risk. Methods for vulnerability assessment include indices as well as vulnerability curves. Vulnerability curves make use of empirical data to show the relationship between the process intensity and the resulting degree of loss on each affected building whereas vulnerability indices are bas...

Knowledge of the spatial and temporal variability of rainfall over a wide range of scales is required in a variety of disciplines. Examples range from hydrology, soil erosion, and cloud and precipitation physics to the design and operation of water management, telecommunication, and atmospheric remote sensing systems. As a result of the gradual dev...

Extreme precipitation of multiple durations is responsible for major natural hazards in mountainous regions, such as flash floods and debris flows. Understanding the orographic impact on the statistics of precipitation extremes is therefore crucial for improving hydrological design and risk management strategies. Here, we use a novel statistical ap...

Plant transpiration is the dominant water flux in the global terrestrial water balance and a key process in the hydrological sciences. Stable isotopes have contributed greatly to this understanding but one difficult assumption for plant water source quantification using hydrogen and oxygen isotopes is that no isotopic fractionation occurs during wa...

Scholars have unravelled the complexities and underlying uncertainties in coupled human and water systems in various fields and disciplines. These complexities, however, are not always reflected in the way in which the dynamics of human–water systems are modelled. One reason is the lack of social data time series, which may be provided by longitudi...

Flash flooding is strongly modulated by the spatial and temporal variability in heavy precipitation. Storm motion prompts a continuous change of rainfall space-time variability that interacts with the drainage river system, thus influencing the flood response. The impact of storm motion on hydrological response is assessed for the 28 September 2012...

Sediment transfer in mountain streams occurs via processes classified as debris flows, hyperconcentrated flows, debris floods, and water flows under the control of the water energy and the amount of involved sediment. Despite the extensive documentation of the channel changes caused by high-magnitude hydrological events, the analysis of the sedimen...

Gathering systematic information on the effects of extreme weather events (e.g., flooded areas, shallow landslide and debris flow activations, windthrows) is a fundamental prerequisite for local authorities to put into practice management strategies and establishing early-intervention priorities. The collection of these data is a resource-demanding...

Numerous scholars have unravelled the complexities and underlying uncertainties of coupled human and water systems in various fields and disciplines. These complexities, however, are not always reflected in the way in which the dynamics of human-water systems are modelled. One reason is the lack of social data times series, which may be provided by...

Insights into the heterogeneity of human behaviours and attitudes toward risk require the understanding of the role played by a plurality of factors, such as risk awareness and trust. However, our knowledge of the interplay of these factors is limited, as is our knowledge of the patterns in risk attitudes and behaviours and their evolution over tim...

Orographic impact on extreme sub‐daily precipitation is critical for risk management but remains insufficiently understood due to complicated atmosphere‐orography interactions and large uncertainties. We investigate the problem adopting a framework able to reduce uncertainties and isolate the systematic interaction of Mediterranean cyclones with a...

Ressi is a small (2.4 ha) forested catchment located in the Italian pre‐Alps. The site became an experimental catchment to investigate the water fluxes in the soil–plant‐atmosphere continuum and the impact of vegetation on runoff generation in 2012. The elevation of the catchment ranges from 598 to 721 m a.s.l. and the climate is humid temperate. T...

This work aims to describe how MODIS snow cover maps can be used to reduce uncertainty in hydrological modelling carried out by means of a topography-based distribution function snowmelt model. The well-known GLUE methodology is applied with a multi-objective approach, combining streamflow observations recorded at the outlet section and satellite-d...

The aim of this study is to identify the main mesoscale features and mechanisms responsible for the generation of a very intense precipitation and wind storm event, named “Vaia”, that affected the eastern Italian Alps on 27–29 October 2018. The event was characterized by extreme accumulated precipitation (up to 850 mm in three days) and exceptional...

Using a novel approach we highlight previously unresolved properties of extreme sub-daily and sub-hourly precipitation statistics. The risk of rainfall-driven natural hazards in mountainous areas could be higher than previously quantified.

Recent tracer-based studies using stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen showed that different methods for extracting water from plant tissues can return different isotopic composition due to the presence of organic compounds and the extraction of different plant water pools. One of the most used methods to extract plant water is the cryogenic vacu...

Plain Language Summary We propose here a unified methodology to quantify the intensity of extreme rainfall of short duration, such as events expected to occur on average once every 100 yr. As opposed to alternative methods in literature, we rely on the simultaneous analysis of all everyday rainfall events, which, being much larger in number than ex...

Catchment geology has a major influence on the relative impact of the main seasonal hydrological predictability sources (initial conditions (IC), climate forcing (CF)) on the forecast skill as it defines the system's persistence. A quantification of its effect, though, on the contribution of the predictability sources to the forecast skill has not...

Combined heat and power systems (CHP) produce heat and electricity simultaneously. Their resulting high efficiency makes them more attractive from the energy managers’ perspective than other conventional thermal systems. Although heat is a by-product of the electricity generation process, system operators usually operate CHP systems to satisfy heat...

The Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression is the most common method for fitting the δ2H-δ18O relationship. Recently, various studies compared the OLS regression with the Reduced Major Axis (RMA) and Major Axis (MA) regression for precipitation data. However, no studies have investigated so far the differences among the OLS, RMA and MA regressions...

Understanding what makes people vulnerable to flooding is key in informing the risk management process. Non-structural measures, such as risk communication, can reduce vulnerability by improving flood risk awareness, but they require a deep understanding of which factors influence risk awareness, and how. We analysed and untangled the role of exper...

check out the final version in GRL: https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL090209

The present study explores the evolutionary trajectory of the glacier-fed Mareit River (South Tyrol, Italian Alps), where a large restoration programme was implemented in 2008–2009. River corridor changes before and after the restoration works were assessed using historical maps, recent field observations, topographic surveys and topographic differ...

Variable renewable energy sources display different space-time variability driving the availability of energy generated from these sources. Complementarity among variable renewable energies in time and space allows reducing the variability of power supply and helps matching the electricity demand curve. This work investigates the temporal structure...

Moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometry (MODIS) snow cover accuracy has been assessed in the past at different scales, with various approaches and in relation to the many factors influencing the remote observation of snow-covered areas (SCA). However, the challenge of fully characterizing MODIS accuracy over forest sites is still open. In thi...

The depth distribution of soil water contributions to plant water uptake is poorly known. Here we evaluate the main water sources used by plants at the global scale and the effect of climate and plant groups on water uptake variability and depth distribution. The global meta‐analysis is based on isotope data (δ ² H and δ ¹⁸ O) extracted from 65 pee...

Hydrogeological hazards are increasingly causing damage worldwide due to climatic and socio-economic changes. Building resilient communities is crucial to reduce potential losses. To this end, one of the first steps is to understand how people perceive potential threats around them. This study aims at exploring how risk awareness of, and preparedne...

Due to the global warming, an increase in the number and intensity of flash flood events triggered by heavy rain is expected. Flash flood risk management requires the identification of regions where the occurrence of flash flood events can be expected to become more frequent. In this study, we shed light on the occurrence and characteristics of fla...

Flash floods rank highly among natural disasters in terms of number of affected people and number of fatalities. This paper analyzes the scaling of the highest flash flood peaks at multiple spatial scales for different hydro-climatic regions in Europe and in the Mediterranean.The analysis is based on an integrated, high-resolution dataset of discha...

Heavy precipitation following a prolonged summer drought led to widespread flash flooding across Andalucía, Murcia and Valencia in south-eastern Spain on 27, 28 and 29 September 2012. On September 28, an extreme flash-flood developed when 214 mm of rain fell in 8 h over the semi-arid and medium-sized Guadalentín River basin up to Paretón (~2800 km²...

Variable energy sources such as solar and runoff sources are intermittent in time and space, following their driving hydro-meteorological processes. Recent research has shown that in mountainous areas the combination of solar and hydropower has large potential (termed complementarity) to cover the temporal variability of the energy load and, by thi...

Private risk reduction behaviours can significantly reduce the negative impacts of flooding and flash floods. Over the past decades, researchers have used various socio-cognitive models or threat and coping mechanisms to explain individual protective behaviours. However, these models ignore the fact that people are not equally ready to act upon a d...

Enhanced temperature-index distributed models for snowpack simulation, incorporating air temperature and a term for clear sky potential solar radiation, are increasingly used to simulate the spatial variability of the snow water equivalent. This paper presents a new snowpack model (termed TOPMELT) which integrates an enhanced temperature-index mode...

The great success of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and its successor Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) has accelerated the development of global high-resolution satellite-based precipitation products (SPP). However, the quantitative accuracy of SPPs has to be evaluated before using these datasets in water resource applications...

A well-known approach to seasonal hydrological forecasting involves the use of ensembles as forcing to a hydrological model, based either on historical meteorological data (Ensemble Streamflow Prediction, ESP) or on forecasts produced by one or more dynamic climate models (multi-model approach). This work aims at investigating the role of initial h...

Climate change has led to concerns about increasing river floods resulting from the greater water-holding capacity of a warmer atmosphere¹. These concerns are reinforced by evidence of increasing economic losses associated with flooding in many parts of the world, including Europe². Any changes in river floods would have lasting implications for th...

Private risk reduction behaviours can significantly reduce the negative impacts of flooding and flash floods. Over the past decades, researchers have used various socio-cognitive models or threat/coping mechanisms to explain individual protective behaviours. However, these models ignore that people are not equally ready to act upon a danger and the...

Ensemble-based forecasting is a popular approach to seasonal hydrological forecasting, forcing the hydrological model with an ensemble of historical meteorological forcings (Ensemble Streamflow Prediction, ESP) or with ensemble forecasts produced by one or more dynamic climate models (multi-model approach). The aim of this work is to analyze the ro...

The spatial and temporal characterization of geochemical tracers over alpine glacierized catchments is particularly difficult, but fundamental to quantify groundwater, glacier melt and rain water contribution to stream runoff. In this study, we analyzed the spatial and temporal variability of δ2H and electrical conductivity (EC) in various water so...

The last decade has witnessed the development of methodologies for the post‐flood documentation of both hydrogeomorphological and social response to extreme precipitation. These investigations are particularly interesting for the case of flash floods, whose space–time scales make their observations by conventional hydrometeorological monitoring net...

Glaciers have an important hydrological buffering effect, but their current rapid reduction raises concerns about future water availability and management. This work presents a hydrological sensitivity analysis to different climatic and glacier cover conditions, carried out over four catchments with area between 8 and 1050 km2, and with glacierizat...

Hillslope-stream connectivity significantly affects streamflow and water quality responses during rainfall and snowmelt events, but is difficult to quantify. One approach to quantify subsurface hillslope-stream connectivity is graph theory, which considers linear connections between groundwater measurement sites. We quantified subsurface connectivi...

The analysis of the temporal dynamics of isotopic and geochemical tracers in stream water during rainfall-runoff events can provide fundamental information to improve our knowledge of runoff generation mechanisms and solute mobilization. In this study, we used hydrometric and tracer data (water stable isotopes, major ions and electrical conductivit...

Large floods may produce remarkable channel changes, which determine damages and casualties in inhabited areas. However, our knowledge of such processes remains poor, as is our capability to predict them. This study analyses the geomorphic response of the Nure River (northern Italy) and nine tributaries to a high-magnitude flood that occurred in Se...

One common approach to cope with floods is the implementation of structural flood protection measures, such as levees or flood-control reservoirs, which substantially reduce the probability of flooding at the time of implementation. Numerous scholars have problematized this approach. They have shown that increasing the levels of flood protection ca...

This paper describes an integrated, high-resolution dataset of hydro-meteorological variables (rainfall and discharge) concerning a number of high-intensity flash floods that occurred in Europe and in the Mediterranean region from 1991 to 2015. This type of dataset is rare in the scientific literature because flash floods are typically poorly obser...