The territory

The territory

The Tuscany has the shape of a great triangle, that it looks on to to the west on the mar Tyrrhenian, is clearly marked to north from the tosco-emiliano Appennino, but it turns out without precise demarcation to east. Very two thirds party of territory (66.5%) are occupied from hills, 25% from mountains, remaining 8.5% from plains: the Tuscany is therefore a typical region to collinare, like in kind the other regions of Italy centers them. The montana section includes all the tirrenico depositor of tosco-emiliano Appenino and great part of the so-called Antiappennino. The tosco-emiliano Appennino is rather compact a montuoso system, characterized from one series of contrafforti that dipartono to comb from the main chain, with prevailing direction from the north-west to south-east; Horn is maintained on the 1.500-2.000 meters of quota (to the Scales, 1,945 m; Falterona mount, 1,654 m, from which the greater regional river draws origin, the Arno). To one of these ridges one of more notes is connected montuose chains of the Tuscany, the so-called Alps Apuane (that they culminate in the Pisanino mount, 1,946 m). The pendii montani generally forests and pastures are covered of; however they do not lack, in correspondence of argillaceous grounds and, therefore, subjects easy to landslides and barren erosions, depositors and brulli, talora carve to you from deep recordings (calanchi). Spectacular they are the "cliffs", that is steep pendii models to you from the erosion, that they encircle the city of Volterra. In the Appennino numerous valichi are opened, some fundamental ones for the communications between northern Italy and that one centers them; between the main ones the steps of Cisa (1,041 m are remembered, covered from the road and the freeway Parma-The Spezia), of Abetone (1,388 m, the elevated step more than all the Appennines), of Porretta (932 m) and of Futa (903 m), than respective they connect Pistoia and Florence with Bologna. Between the montuose ridges they are opened goes them wide from the unmistakable characteristics. Usually they have denominations that they do not derive from those of the rivers that they cross to them and that they have contributed to form them with theirs I placed to you alluvial: therefore it goes it them of the Lean river calls Lunigiana, the high one goes them of the Serchio river has Garfagnana name and the high one goes them of the Arno is called Casentino. The from Tuscany Antiappennino does not constitute a montuoso system unitary, and not even homogenous as far as nature and geologic origin; it comprises instead massive and short isolated ridges, that they interest the field centers them and southern of the region. Between the main reliefs they go numbered Metalliferous Hills (1,060 m), i whose giacimenti were already take advantage of to you from the etruschi, and the mount Amiata (1,738 m). In the surrounding territory these elevations, which the Saint mount Michele, 893 m can also be added to the mounts of the Chianti (maximum top), spread the famous from Tuscany necks, than digradano with sweet undulations, put in from characteristic hills, towards the course of the rivers: typical the landscapes of the Senese, the zone to the south-west of Florence. Beyond to being much limited, the pianeggianti areas extremely are fragmented. Along the coast the two only plain features of a sure extension are the Versilia, than it is developed for a cinquantina of kilometers, from the foce of the Lean one to the foce of the Arno, and is immediately sluice to the shoulders from the Alps Apuane, and the Fen or plain of the Ombrone Grossetano, extended between Piombino and the border with the Lazio, where in part it continues. Immenser they are the inner plains, that they correspond in effects to the conche of the greater ones goes them fluvial. The main ones are therefore those formed from the Arno, in particular the Inferior Valdarno, than allonge from Florence to the sea; relatively extended it is also the Valdichiana, or plain of Arezzo, that it occupies the bottom of an ancient lago, prosciugata and cleared by means of the construction of the main channel of the Chiana. However, also in theirs reduced surface (altogether they occupy approximately 2.000 km²), the from Tuscany plains - between which the Fen, today cleared - represent an area strongly attraction and of great city development. The coast, than allonge for 330 km between the foce of Lean and the cape of the Argentario, is in low, sabbiosa and little uneven kind; the single insenatura of relief is the gulf of Follonica, situated between the cape of Livorno province of) and Tip Piombino (in Wing (in province of Grosseto). The more active port of the region, that one of Livorno, is artificial. The Tuscany has one great wealth of water course; moreover the fragmented morphology of the territory makes yes that features in kind of short rivers and from the reduced river basin. The Arno is the from Tuscany river for excellence; not only for length (240 km) and the amplitude of the catchment basin (8,247 km², approximately a third party of the regional surface), but above all because its valley constitutes the area on which, historically and economically, gravita from always the region. However also the Arno does not differ a lot dagli others from Tuscany water course, that they have a regimen torrentizio, with a insufficient summery capacity and attends primaverili and autumnal floods, of does not shave with overflowings and disastrous floodings also, like the alluvium of Florence del November 1966. The greater river that sfocia to north of the Arno is the Serchio (111 km), that it is born from the tosco-emiliano Appennino, it covers the Garfagnana and it bathes the flat one of Lucca; to south it is the Ombrone, or more exactly Ombrone Grossetano (161 km), that it is born on mounts of the Chianti and sfocia in the Tyrrhenian one to the south-west of Grosseto. The only lagos of a sure relief are that one, much colorful, of Massaciuccoli (6,9 km²), in province of Lucca, legacy to the memories of Giacomo Puccini (that it lived here for along time and is buried in the near locality of Tower of the Puccini Lago) and the lago (or lagoon) of Orbetello (26 km²), in province of Grosseto.