Introduction
Water monitoring, with high spatial and temporal resolution, is important to maintain its quality. In fact, in addition to the environmental damage that can be irreparable, the costs of pollution remediation are often higher than the cost of prevention or early intervention. Research must be directed towards proposing economically sustainable systems and procedures; only in this way it is possible to hypothesize an extensive use of water quality control and management systems. In order to create a qualitative/semi-quantitative water monitoring system, since it is impossible to monitor every specific pollutant, it is essential to establish an Early Warning criterion. In other words, we need to establish which parameters to measure and how to derive a synthetic pollution index from them that activates the rapid alert system. It is essential that the correlations between parameters must be identified in order to identify potentially redundant variables. To establish the Early Warning, it is useful that alarm thresholds are not "individually" established for each of the monitored parameters. In fact, it would be useful to identify a numerical index that can validly and correctly characterize the phenomenon from both a qualitative and possibly quantitative point of view. In general, the requirements that a numerical "alarm" index must have are mainly two:
In order to d efine a syntetic index that allows to generate an Early Warning, the paper explores metrological aspects that should allow to define a minimal set of physical/chemical parametrs to moni tor.
Laboratory Water Quality Testing
In order to verify the theoretica l approach a series of test have been performed in laboratory using a suitable and calibrated multiparametric probe (Fig. 1) : the SMx-485 of GEOVES s.r.l.. The probe has been inserted as sensor in a new automatic system able to analyze the quality of the water and to store samples of water in bottles if the Early Warning is generated. The system has been designed aiming to semplicity, reliability and robustness so allowing it to be mounted even on rovers as MAR – Multipurpose Amphibious Rover, which does not offer an environment particularly comfortable.
Aknowledgment: Research activity developed within the Lazio FESR Program 2021- 2027, Avviso Riposizionamento Competitivo RSI, expenditure attributed to the “ECOMAR Fast Deployment Early Warning Environmental System” project identifier GECOWEB Plus A0613-2023-077941. CUP F83C23003470002.