Venice may be forced to relocate in the future as scientists scramble to save it from the growing threat of flooding.<\/p>\n
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A new study published in the journal Scientific Reports assessed existing and potential adaptation strategies in Italian cities to sea level rise projections from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report.<\/p>\n
Venice’s lagoon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has experienced increasing flooding over the past 150 years. Last summer, powerful thunderstorms hit the region, overwhelming drainage systems and turning roads into rushing rivers.<\/p>\n
Severe flooding in 2019 killed two people and caused hundreds of millions of euros worth of damage, including in St. Mark’s Basilica, a popular tourist attraction. Glass barriers and a \u20ac3.3 million restoration plan were announced in 2023 to protect the 900-year-old church, which is still at the mercy of the tide.<\/p>\n
Scientists have now outlined three possible adaptation strategies for Venice, warning that swift action is “essential”. The authors of the study say Venice exemplifies the challenges many low-lying coastal regions will face as sea levels rise over the coming centuries, including the Maldives and the Netherlands.<\/p>\n
Will Venice move?<\/h2>\n
The authors predict that levees could be needed if sea levels rise by more than half a meter, and even if emissions are kept low, by 2100, at an estimated cost of between \u20ac500 million and \u20ac4.5 billion.<\/p>\n
These are artificial levees, usually made of earth, sand, or rock, that are built along coastlines or rivers to act as a barrier against potential flooding.<\/p>\n
Closing lagoons with “super-levees” (wide reinforced embankments) is also viable beyond 0.5 meters of sea level rise and could protect cities from up to 10 meters of sea level rise. However, its initial cost could exceed 30 billion euros.<\/p>\n
As a last resort, sea level rise of more than 4.5 meters could require the relocation of cities, populations and historic buildings, which is predicted to occur after 2300, at a cost of up to 100 billion euros, the study said. <\/p>\n
The authors warn that building large-scale interventions such as permanent barriers can take 30 to 50 years, so early planning is essential.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no optimal strategy for Venice.\u201d<\/h2>\n
“Our analysis shows that there is no optimal strategy for Venice,” said Professor Robert Nicholls of the Tyndall Center for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny approach must balance multiple factors, including the well-being and security of Venice’s residents, economic prosperity, the future of the lagoon’s ecosystem, heritage preservation, and local tradition and culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nichols said all low-lying, densely populated coastal areas should recognize the challenge of long-term sea level rise and “start considering the adaptation implications now.”<\/p>\n
“Given Venice’s high cultural value, these costs are clearly incomplete and no adaptation measures can sustain today’s Venice in the long term,” he added.<\/p>\n
Why are sea levels rising in Venice?<\/h2>\n
Venice is located in a shallow coastal lagoon, which is already at risk during spring tides. <\/p>\n
According to Royal Museums Greenwich, the seasonal sirocco winds can also cause “storm surges”, which can cause water to flow across the Adriatic Sea into the lagoon and towards the city. When storm surges and storm surges combine, flooding can become severe. <\/p>\n
Global warming is also accelerating sea level rise around the world due to a combination of melting glaciers and thermal expansion of ocean water due to warming. <\/p>\n
To make matters worse, the ground level in the city of Venice is currently sinking by about 1 mm per year due to natural ground movements. This situation is further exacerbated by human activities such as pumping groundwater from beneath the lagoon. However, this is now prohibited.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
#Relocation #Venice #sea #levels #continue #rise<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Venice may be forced to relocate in the future as scientists scramble to save it from the growing threat of flooding. advertisement advertisement A new study published in the journal Scientific Reports assessed existing and potential adaptation strategies in Italian cities to sea level rise projections from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":511,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[673,753,747,748,752,751,754,746,678,749,750],"class_list":["post-510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-climate-change","tag-continue","tag-flood","tag-italy","tag-levels","tag-relocation","tag-rise","tag-scientific-research","tag-sea","tag-sea-level-rise","tag-venice"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=510"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/510\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/511"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyokal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}