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The City of Venice is Under Threat from Flooding and Tides |
Italian experts are proposing a bold project to save the city of Venice, which is threatened by water. Instead of draining the water away, they want to pump water in to raise the sinking city.
The plan involves pumping a large volume of seawater beneath the surface of Venice through 12 pipes, each approximately 700 meters long. The seawater will expand the sand layer below and elevate the city’s foundations by about 30 centimeters over the next 10 years.
The city in Northern Italy is gradually sinking due to rising sea levels in the Adriatic Sea and increasingly high tides. The Italian government is spending 4.5 billion euros on another controversial project aimed at constructing flood barriers to prevent seawater from inundating the city.
Now, a group of geologists and engineers from the prestigious University of Padua has come up with a new idea that would only cost 100 million euros. According to them, this plan could help raise Venice to nearly its original level before it began sinking three centuries ago. This project would not replace the flood barrier proposal but could work in conjunction with it.
However, not everyone agrees. An expert who helped stabilize the Leaning Tower of Pisa has described this project as a science fiction story and warns that it could destroy the fragile structure of Venice.
Yet, the city’s mayor is intrigued by this proposal. He believes it is time to find ways to elevate the city and thinks that this technique could make that a reality.
M.T. (according to BBC)
