The integrated sediment management planning: where is the world going and where do we stand in Italy

In this work, the relevance of implementing integrated sediment management plans at the basin scale is discussed. After highlighting the important role of sediments in the aquatic ecosystem, we addressed the main issues related to the sediment quantity in a river basin, that are essentially linked to the alteration of the sediment balance due to interactions with human activities and infrastructures. The in‐depth study of the sediment balance is fundamental for drafting the sediment management plans, and it should be carried out with appropriate models. To obtain reliable data, these latter need a proper calibration and validation using field measurements of the sediment transport. The plans have to be seen as an approach that recognises the whole system at which sediment‐related processes operate, and aligns these in a consistent way with the objectives of environmental policies as well as those stemming from socio‐economic activities. In many European river basins, sediment management plans are already implemented as part of international river basin commission protocols in the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/CE). In some other countries, as in the case of Italy, they are legally envisaged in the context of the River Basin Management Plans. Thus, we briefly discuss the salient points of a virtuous example of sediment management plans, provided by the Po River Basin District.