Is Venice sinking? When will it happen?
Is Venice sinking? When will it happen? Venice’s waterways are what makes it such a unique and romantic place, but does a watery fate lie in store for this enchanting city? And if so, when will Venice sink? Acqua alta If you’re familiar with Venice you’ll probably already be aware of the ‘acqua alta’, or ‘high water’, which affects the city numerous times a year at higher tides. As a visitor, your trip may not coincide with this phenomenon, but if it does, you’ll find St Mark’s Square temporarily turned into a lake and raised boards provided for you to walk on. This fact of Venetian life may be alarming to the uninitiated, but it’s not an immediate cause for panic and it’s not why people say ‘visit Venice before it’s too late’. The increasing frequency with which the acqua alta occurs is thought to be a consequence of the management of the lagoon – in particular land reclamation and the deepening of underwater channels to accommodate tankers. Water moves more quickly in the lagoo...