Petroleum seeps have historically been important drivers of global petroleum exploration. Still today they can serve as direct indicators of gas and/or oil subsurface accumulations. In particular the assessment of the origin of seeping gas is a key task for understanding, without drilling, the subsurface hydrocarbon potential, genesis and quality; e.g., the presence of shallow microbial gas, deeper thermogenic accumulations, the presence of oil and non-hydrocarbon undesirable gases (CO2, N2, H2S). Seeps are then indicators of tectonic discontinuities (faults) and fractured rocks; they can also represent geo-hazards and sources of greenhouse gas (methane) and photochemical pollutants (ethane and propane).
HYSED-IT is a new database of onshore gas and oil seeps in Italy (HYSED-IT).
The present version (2013) reports coordinates, names, and main features of about 340 fluid hydrocarbon seeps including mud volcanoes, gas seeps, oil seeps and methane-rich water springs.
HYSED-IT is the result of the sub-project "Geological emissions of hydrocarbons to the atmosphere in petroleum-sedimentary basins in Italy", coordinated by Giuseppe Etiope (INGV Roma), in the framework of the MIUR - PRIN 2009 project "HYDROCARBONS EMISSIONS FROM GEOLOGICAL SOURCES TO THE ATMOSPHERE IN ITALY" (prot. 2009JM4K9M), coordinated by Dario Tedesco (Seconda Università degli Studi di Napoli).
