Salento Lecce waterless

Salento Lecce waterless
Antonio Bruno*

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All are aware that without water you can not think about life. I live in Salento Lecce, which is characterized by the absence of surface water. In this vein note demonstrates how did my ancestors in sourcing water.
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All are aware that without water you can not think about life. The settlements of human beings have always occurred near the waterways that allow easy supply. I live in Salento Lecce, which is characterized by the absence of surface water. In this land causes the dissolution of the karst limestone cliffs, determines the infiltration of water into the ground, more specifically, the carbonate in the base of the peninsula, where they form a powerful pitch, that pitch of the bottom, supported by sea water intrusion, and then the continental 'Water is hidden in the bowels of the earth and until the last century my ancestors did not know it even existed. Here I ask and wonder how you may have developed civilization in this land without water?
800 fresh water of Salento Lecce was carefully collected was kept and used with great parsimony. The water required at the time was obtained for a half from the water surface by digging wells and the remainder from the collection of rainwater in cisterns.
But let's figure out what was the treatment that had water in Salento Lecce, the tanks were built in the tufa and then were covered, leaving an opening that allowed the collection of water. In the area of the "Greek Salento" in the town of Marta, Soleto, Martignano, Palmieri, Sternatia, Zollino, Corigliano d'Otranto, and Melpignano Castrignano is absent because the water surface is collected rainwater in tanks called "Pozzelle.
Cosimo De Days in 1872 describes the tanks Pozzelle said: "If a land consists of relatively permeable layers, is a practice and the walls surrounding the excavation of masonry composed of stones and the bottom filter is covered with clay or bitumen or other substances waterproof, then you will come to collect rainwater and deposited in the lower strata and they will last long enough. Pozzelle In the case of the permeable layer is the rough stone and marl ferruginous, the waterproof layer is formed from clay. I wanted to observe Codest closely developments in Pozzelle those in which the water reached a level relatively lower. The vaults are of stone tell of Lecce bastard and compact limestone arranged on each other without cement mo 'of the walls of the walls that surround and surround the country estates, and so from the bottom to the wellhead. "
In areas close to water washout Lecce gathered on the roofs, taking care not to merge into the tank for collecting the first water stream in the autumn, dusty rooftops after the summer became full of dust and other substances that were transported by water.
Rainwater rainfall later, however, was accumulated in the tank. In some cases the rainwater that fell from the roof, was channeled into cataletti zinc or brick and conveyed into the main tank. This tank was torn down across from a wall to dry, as you know, if left without plaster is very porous. This drywall was a "filter" because the water passing through this wall from the main tank to the smaller secondary was filtered and then was drawn here to be used. Ingenious and absolutely in line with the water filtration systems used today.
The amount of water in the tank than to depend on seasonal rainfall was instrumental to the surface of roofs and their trim, it is intuitive that a larger area of roof was able to collect more rainwater. The limit was then represented by small houses and badly mainly covered by bricks and wood or even straw and mud roofs so obtained were not sufficiently waterproof and therefore with a low efficiency in the collection of rainwater.
In some cases, collected rainwater funneled by farmyards but showed a great dispersion and certainly not necessary for hygiene.
There was used to disinfect water in the tanks by putting lime. In the case of collection from farmyards, because water is full of organic material, produce unpleasant odors that mitigated the 800 farmers dipping tanks scented plants such as mint, thyme and rosemary. It 'is quite clear that the water collected from farmyards was unusable for drinking purposes and was instead available for watering plants.
Salento in Lecce in the period of 600 and 700 there was a large settlement of the Convent of the most diverse religious orders that quenched the thirst of the poorest people of the time. How do you say? Spirituality and prayers were the cause of the water supply? No! The monasteries had large areas of roof that picks up and the rains that filled the water tanks of convents. This amount was more than enough for the religious donavano the excess to the poor farmers so their thirst quenched.
With the advent of the French Revolution and the abolition of religious orders to the people of Salento Lecce passed away the water of the convents and increased thirst. Rehabilitation work came much later and therefore the absence of water caused the poverty of those living on agriculture lands.
Today with a simple gesture, turning a knob or raising a lever comes out of the tap water, pure and uncontaminated drinking water. It 'important that we are all aware that this simple gesture is the result of the efforts and ingenuity of women and men of Salento Lecce now has plenty of water. But with this awareness there is a danger that is the use of excessive resource that could be consumed. But that's another story that will tell you soon.

* Agronomist

Bibliography
Dr. P. Papadia - Prof. P. SANS: The Pozzelle del Salento Lecce
Mario De Lucia - Antonio Franco Mastrolia: Society and productive resources in Terra d'Otranto during the nineteenth century