Transcript Venice and climate change

Venice - Myth and Reality
about Climate Change
By Dr. Dominic Standish, University of Iowa (USA)/CIMBA (Italy).
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Introduction
Structure: Sinking, Climate Change, Flooding, The Venice ‘Problem’,
Venetian Mythology and Climate, Environmental Risk: Myth and Reality,
Questions and Discussion.
Duration: 1 hour.
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Teamwork: We would like to avoid 'side conversations' during
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Presentation objective
To examine how there is reality to
climate change in Venice, yet myths
too.
Deconstructing these myths reveals that
climate change is not the principal
problem in Venice.
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Rising Waters in Venice
‘Sinking’ mystifies several phenomena that have caused
flooding in Venice.
It is important to distinguish between:
 general rise in relative sea
level (RSL)
and
 exceptional high tides
Exceptional high tides are
the product of many factors.
These include rain and water
from rivers flowing into the
lagoon.
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Sinking in Venice
 Subsidence mainly caused by extraction of groundwater from wells for
industrial complex at Marghera (1930-1970)
 Venice’s rate of 0.4 mm/year subsidence accelerated to 1.8 mm/year
from 1930 (Ghetti 1988)
 By 1950 subsidence was 8 mm a year
 Currently, subsidence is minimal (0.5 mm a year)
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Why does Venice flood?
• Between 1897 and 1983, relative sea level (RSL) in Venice rose 23 cm
• 12 cm of the 23 cm RSL rise was due to subsidence
• 11 cm was caused by rising sea levels (Italian National Research
Council)
• Global sea levels added 5 cm to the water level in Venice between 1970
and 2005 (Istituzione Centro Previsioni e Segnalazioni Maree 2009)
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Global Sea Level Rises
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) established that there was a
global temperature rise of 0.74° C between
1906 and 2005, which added to global sea
levels rising (eustatic change) by an average
rate of 1.8 mm/year from 1961 (IPCC 2007,
2).
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Global Sea Level Rises Have
Minimal Impact on Venice (A)
In a paper published in 2009, Carbognin et al
(2009) analysed how global sea level rises are
predicted to affect the Adriatic Sea, which is
an arm of the Mediterranean Sea. Compared
with nearby seas, “[i]n the Mediterranean, a
semi-enclosed basin, sea level trend rates are
smaller than in the neighbouring (sic).
In particular the Adriatic Sea assumes very
peculiar and different characteristics due its
shape and low depth” (Carbognin et al. 2009,7).
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Global Sea Level Rises Have
Minimal Impact on Venice (B)
Carbognin et al (2009) refer to research by Holgate
(2007) showing that the eustatic rate in the
northern Adriatic Sea is consistently lower
(approximately 35 percent) than the global
mean. Similarly, the OECD (2010) notes that,
“since the Mediterranean has registered
stationary and even falling sea levels in recent
decades, its take-up of global average sea
level rise could be lower than in other places”
(OECD 2010, 158).
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Recent flooding in Venice
In 2007, there were no high tides over 110cm.
In December 2008, the city experienced its highest floods for 22 years.
In 2009, there were 16 high tide
flood events above 110cm.
This compares with an average of
3.5 such events a year 1960-1980 and
4 events in the last 9 years.
The number of medium flooding
events in Venice during 2010 of 80cm
and 90cm above the tide meter
surpassed the number of these events in 2009.
2009.
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Protection from high flooding
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Venice's flooding protection
 Project MOSE’s floodgates should protect Venice from tides above
110cm after completion predicted in 2014
 CVN (Consorzio Venezia Nuova – New Venice Consortium) and other
organisations have been implementing ‘insulae’ defence measures
 Venice is now much better protected than in 1966
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1966 floods – the start of the
Venice ‘problem’
 Huge storm surge of the 3rd and 4th of November 1966 exaggerated
flooding. Rain and water from rivers made flooding worse.
 Parts of Venice experienced water depths 1.94m above mean sea level
 One hundred per cent of the city was
inundated.
 Picture: St. Mark's Square
4th. November 1966
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Objective response to 1966
disaster?
 Floods of 1966 were worse in other parts of north-eastern and central
Italy
 By 19th November 1966, death toll from floods was 110 people
(ANSA 1997)
2 people died near Venice at Chioggia
Both were heart
attacks caused indirectly by floods
Picture: Florence 1966
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UNESCO = key claim maker
 UNESCO led international response to 1966 floods
 UNESCO facilitated international diffusion of Venice problem
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Legislation to define the
Venice problem
Special Law 171 (1973) declared Venice and its lagoon:
“a problem of essential national interest.”
(see Michele Vianello 2004:150)
There were no special laws for Florence.
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Metaphorical decline
and sinking
Legacy of the Venetian Republic and symbolism of its fall added to
perception that Venice was threatened by sinking.
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Mythology and Venice
 Venetians constructed a mythology about their lineage
 Similar to other major cities,
including Rome (Edward Muir 1981)
 The first ruling Doge of Venice:
Paoluccio Anafesto
 Recorded in the earliest chronicles of the city
(John the Deacon)
 Never existed as a Doge or Venetian!
(John Julius Norwich 1983:13)
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The Myth of St. Mark
 Two Venetian merchants returned to Venice from Egypt with the
corpse of St. Mark (828)
 Historical evidence exists that a body was brought to Venice at this
time
 There is uncertainty over whether this was the body of the Evangelist
 Did not detract from importance of St. Mark myth for the Venetian
state
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Mythology and Climate (A)
The most important legend in the myth of St Mark for the
relationship between Venetians and their environment was
the evangelist’s role in stopping a storm surge to calm the
lagoon.
During a fierce storm on 15 February 1340, a fisherman
was battling to save his boat and equipment from damage.
The fisherman was approached by a stranger, who sent
him to two other strangers, the last of whom ordered the
fisherman to row to the mouth of the lagoon.
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Mythology and Climate (B)
There he saw a ship of demons, which were causing the
storm. The three strangers were revealed as Saint Mark,
Saint George and Saint Nicholas. “See,” St Mark said to
the fisherman, “how high the water has risen in the
houses, and how many boats have sunk.” He added,
“Do you see, this city is going to the bottom and will perish
by the waters” (re-told by Crouzet-Pavan 2002, 50).
The three saints disposed of the demons and calmed the
lagoon by making the sign of a cross.
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Venice at the centre of Western
civilisation: receiving the French
Ambassador (Canaletto)
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Relative political harmony
Mythology about Venetian Republic's harmonious institutional
structures dates from fifteenth century
(Crouzet-Pavan 2002:187)
 Launched throughout
Europe during
sixteenth century
 Compared with European
breakdown of Christian unity
and unstable Italian city states.
 Picture: Canaletto's harmony
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Venice as a metaphor for selfgovernment
Development of self-government during Venetian Republic created
constitutional myth

Resonated prominently in European, American and anglophone
political thought, particularly during sixteenth century

(John Eglin 2001:42)
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Death of the political
metaphor
 The representation of Venice as politically degraded was confirmed by
the fall of the Republic in 1797.
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Napoleon introduced mythical
Venetian disequilibrium
 Divorce of this previously mythically balanced relationship
 Led to belief that disequilibrium emerged between the sea and city
 Myth that Napoleon's reign
began Venice's environmental
disequilibrium built on constitutional
disequilibrium.
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Replacement of political with
cultural metaphors
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After 1797, the myth of Venice lost much of its political significance
Its reputation for cultural decadence became dominant
Venice became a key icon in the cultural Romantic movement
Illustrated by J.M.W. Turner (picture)
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The End of the Venetian
Republic as the Fall of Man
“In the fall of Venice think of thine.”
Lord George Gordon Byron, Childe
Harold’s Pilgrimage, Canto IV, (2008 [1812],
153).
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Venice as decadent, fallen
humanity
Thomas Mann’s 1912 book Death in Venice
In Luigi Visconti's 1973 film Death in Venice:
“not only the characters are in a state fallen from grace and integrity,
Venice itself is continuously targeted as a metaphorical expression of
the Fall.” (Margaret Plant 2002:334)
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Venice as human failure
For Friedrich Nietzsche (1982:494), the Venetian lagoon became a prism
for human melancholy:
“All is now motionless, flat, dejected,
gloomy, like the lagoon of Venice.”
Philosopher Edward
Said (1999:46) stated:
Venice “is a place where
one finds a quite special finality.”
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Moral decline and physical
sinking
 Speculations that the Republic's fall would
be followed by Venice sinking into the sea
 See The Stones of Venice by John Ruskin (1860)
 But devastating flooding was not new to Venice
 In 1106 severe flooding of the Venetian old town
Malamocco swept away the entire community and left
not one building standing (Norwich 1983, 82).
Lagoon islands experienced significant inundations in
782, 840, 875, 1102, 1240, 1268, and 1794
(Keahey 2002, 98).
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Physical decline and sinking
The emblematic bell tower on St. Mark's Square collapsed in 1902
 This captured international attention
 Viennese architect Otto Wagner declared this indicated the imminent
sinking of the city
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Venice’s waters perceived as
modern threat
 Despite the more devastating impact of
flooding before 1797, the Venetian Republic
celebrated its waters as resources for trade,
fish, salt and as a means of transport.
This was illustrated by the annual ‘Marriage
To the Sea’ ceremony.
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Sea and lagoon as modern
sources of wealth
 Venice's tourist economy was worth €1.5 billion annually in 2007 with
the cruise ship market representing nearly 10 percent of this.
 510 cruise ships sailed through Venice in 2007 compared with 200 in
2000.
 Venice's cruise passengers increased by 16.9 percent in 2009 compared
to 2008, despite a 16.7 percent decline in total port traffic (mostly
cargo)
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Tourism as environmental risk
 Mass tourism is being interpreted as another human created
environmental risk for Venice (Margaret Plant 2002:2)
 No positive accounts of how the masses can now do a 'Grand Tour' of
Venice
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Venice as metaphor for
environmental risk
 Sustainability and risk were linked to Venice at UN Rio environmental
conference (1992)
 UN addressed Venice as special case (Musu 2001)
 UNESCO (2007) described Venice as threatened by projected sea level
rises due to climate change
(Environmental News Service 2007)
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Venice as the crisis of Western
civilisation
Venice has a long history as symbol of Western
civilisation
 André Chastel referred to
“the Venetian challenge:
the central episode of the
crisis of modern civilization”
(quoted in Rinaldo 2001:61)
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Venice is not in peril from sinking,
rising sea levels or tourism
These are constructed myths that express contemporary
cultural preoccupations. These myths can be compared
with the ancient myth of St Mark, created to provide the
city with wider meaning. There is reality to rising sea levels
and increased flooding. But these problems are being
addressed with the mobile dams and can be solved with
other technologies.
The real danger for Venice, and
unfortunately for many parts of the world, is the sinking of
human ambition, courage and resilience.
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Some of my work on Venice
that you may find useful
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'Attempts to sink Venice dam project flood into EU,' The Economist - The European Voice, 25/3/2004.
'Will sinking Venice raise our ambitions?' Italy Daily section of the International Herald Tribune,3.12.2002.
'Flap Project Will Save Venice,' Italy Daily section of the International Herald Tribune, 10.12.2001.
'Barriers to barriers: why environmental precaution has delayed mobile floodgates to protect Venice,' in
Adapt or Die, ed. K. Okonski (London: Profile Books, 2003).
'Barriere alle barriere: perché il principio di precauzione ha ostacolato il progetto MOSE che salverà
Venezia,' in Dall’effetto serra alla pianificazione economica, eds. C. Stagnaro and K. Okonski (Milan:
Rubbettino/Leonardo Facco, 2003).
'A view from the bridge,' The Architects’ Journal (UK), 3.4.2003.
'Big projects, small minds', Spiked-online, http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/00000006D985.htm,17.7.2002.
'Why we should save Venice,' Spiked-online,
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/printable/395/, 15.6.2006.
'Kyoto COP Out,' Spiked-online http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/printable/395/, 18.12.2003.
'Who will save Venice from sinking?' Spiked-online,
http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/00000000543C.htm, 19.1.2001.
'Death in Venice,' Spiked-online, http://www.spikedonline.com/index.php?/site/printable/3687/27.7.2007.
''The death of Venice is greatly exaggerated,' Spiked-online,
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/article/6004/, 8.12.2008.
'Barriers to Barriers,' Tech Central Station, http://www.techcentralstation.be/2051/, 29.4.2003.
'Venice's sinking ambition,' Tech Central Station, http://www.techcentralstation.com 23.4.2003.
'MIXED REACTIONS TO VENICE BARRIER APPROVAL,' ANSA Italian National Press Agency,24.5.2004.
'OPPOSITION RISES AGAINST VENICE DAM PROJECT,' ANSA Italian National Press Agency,13.2.2004.
‘SEAWATER COULD SAVE VENICE FROM SINKING' ANSA Italian National Press Agency, 22.12.2003.
'WATER PROTESTS AGAINST VENICE DAM PROJECT,' ANSA Italian National Press Agency, 13.9.2004.
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My work on Venice
'Venice in Environmental Peril?
Myth and Reality' University
Press of America, 2011.
Website and blog:
http://www.dominicstandish.com/
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Video links on Venice that you
may find useful
 'Francesco's Venice,' BBC DVD, 2006.
 'Venice: The Flood of 1966':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01I-Ox2PYbs
 High Water (Acqua alta) in Venice (2005):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDPWwW6w93k
 'Extreme Engineering: Venice Flood Gates,' Discovery Channel:
http://www.veoh.com/videos/v261228WDHNpSSB
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Selected references
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ANSA News Agency, Venice 1966-1996. 30 Years of Protection as Covered by the Press, Rome, ANSA Dossier, 1997.
Berendt, J., The City of Falling Angels, London, Hodder and Stoughton, 2005.
Carbognin, Laura, Pietro Teatini, Alberto Tomasin, and Luigi Tosi. 2009. “Global change and relative sea level rise at Venice: what impact
in term of flooding.” Climate Dynamics 35, 6:1039-1047.
Crouzet-Pavan, E., Venice Triumphant. The Horizons of a Myth, Maryland (USA), John Hopkins University Press, 2002.
Eglin, J., Venice Transfigured. The Myth of Venice in British Culture, 1660-1797, New York, Palgrave, 2001.
Fay, S. and Knightley, P., The Death of Venice, London, Andre Deutsch, 1976.
Fletcher, C. and Da Mosto, J., The Science of Saving Venice, Turin, London, Venice and New York, Umberto Alemandi, 2004.
Fletcher, C. and Spencer, T. eds., Flooding and Environmental Challenges for Venice and its Lagoon: State of Knowledge, Cambridge and
New York, Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Frassetto, R., The facts of relative sea-level rise in Venice, in Flooding and Environmental Challenges for Venice and its Lagoon: State of
Knowledge, eds. C. Fletcher and T. Spencer (Cambridge and New York, Cambridge University Press, 2005), 29-40.
Holgate, Simon. 2007. “On the decadal rates of sea level change during the twentieth century.” Geophysical Research Letters 34
Ghetti, A, Subsidence and Sea level Fluctuations in the Territory of Venice, Landscape and Urban Planning, 1988, 16, 13-33.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). 2007. “Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report. Summary for Policymakers..
Keahey, J., Venice against the Sea, A City Besieged, New York, St. Martin’s Press, 2002.
Muir, E., Civic Ritual in Renaissance Venice, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1981.
Nietzsche, F., Thoughts on the Prejudices of Morality, trans. R.J. Hollingdale, Cambridge University Press, 1982.
Norwich, J., A History of Venice, Penguin, London, 1983.
Norwich, J., Paradise of Cities. Venice and Its Nineteenth-century Visitors, Viking (Penguin), London, 2003.
OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). 2010. OECD Territorial Reviews: Venice, Italy 2010.
Plant, M., Venice. Fragile City. 1797-1997, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2002.
Rosand, D., Myths of Venice. The Figuration of a State, Chapel Hill and London, University of North Carolina Press, 2001.
Said, E., Not all the Way to the Tigers: Britten's “Death in Venice,” Critical Quarterly, 41, 1999, 46.
Vianello, M., Un’isola del tesoro, Venice, Marsilio, 2004.
Zucchetta, G., Storia dell’acqua alta a Venezia, Venice, Marsilio, 2000.
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