{"id":35317,"date":"2023-01-13T16:41:58","date_gmt":"2023-01-13T16:41:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsblogsnew.ihbc.org.uk\/?p=35317"},"modified":"2023-01-13T16:41:58","modified_gmt":"2023-01-13T16:41:58","slug":"venice-successfully-deployed-a-very-low-tech-measure-to-protect-saint-marks-basilica-from-high-tide-glass-barriers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/?p=35317","title":{"rendered":"Venice Successfully Deployed a Very Low-Tech Measure to Protect Saint Mark\u2019s Basilica From High Tide: Glass Barriers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"bridge\"Saint Mark\u2019s Basilica stayed nice and drying during flooding earlier this month as a result of a very low tech measure to protect it from high tide: glass barriers.<\/h3>\n

image: for illustration only – Fiona Newton<\/em><\/h6>\n

<\/p>\n

\u2026 a simple and straightforward solution\u2026<\/span><\/em><\/h2>\n

Artnet News writes:<\/p>\n

How can Venice save Saint Mark\u2019s Basilica from the rising waters of Acqua Alta, the lagoon\u2019s seasonal high tide? In a simple and straightforward solution, the Italian city has erected glass barriers around the 900-year-old church to keep the waters out.<\/p>\n

The new barriers will protect against up to three-and-a-half feet of water, which would allow for a high tide of over six feet above sea level. Working in concert with the transparent fencing is an engineering project to create underground drainage channels below the church and the square that are designed to remove flood waters from the area.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s hope that, from now on, there are no more high waters that will touch the base of the basilica,\u201d Mario Piana, the basilica\u2019s architect and restoration expert, told the\u00a0Guardian<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The barrier performed admirably during an Acqua Alta event on December 10, successfully preventing the waters flooding Saint Mark\u2019s Square, called Piazza San Marco in Italian, from touching the basilica.<\/p>\n

To keep the glass walls from being overturned by the force of the water, the city installed the barriers using a base of armored concrete buried beneath the paving stones of Saint Mark\u2019s Square. (The intricate geometric design, of white limestone and gray trachyte, was laid in 1723 and is the work of architect Andrea Tirali.)<\/p>\n

The church and its namesake square sit in one of the lowest-lying areas of the city, with the square among the first places to\u00a0succumb to rising tides.<\/p>\n

The flooding was particularly bad in 2019, forcing the\u00a0evacuation of the regional council chambers\u00a0and temporary closures of city\u00a0museums\u00a0and the\u00a0Venice Biennale\u00a0as\u00a0water levels reached to near-record heights. The city was able to\u00a0safeguard most of its\u00a0art despite the worst flooding in half a century, but the issue\u00a0remains a pressing one\u00a0as\u00a0Venice looks to adapt\u00a0to\u00a0rising sea levels\u00a0caused by\u00a0climate change.<\/p>\n

Even after flood waters subside, their effects can be lasting. The seawater can cause erosion, and leave behind corrosive salt crystals\u2014potentially damaging the famous basilica\u2019s marble columns and mosaic floors.<\/p>\n

The church is not working alone to try and protect the city\u2019s cultural heritage against rising tides. After years of delays\u2014as well as\u00a035 arrests on charges of corruption, including against the mayor\u2014Venice successfully deployed 78 flood barriers\u00a0at mouth of the lagoon as a test of the the \u20ac7 billion ($9.5 billion)\u00a0MOSE Project in October 2020. What was projected as a 53-inch rise in water levels amounted to mere puddles, demonstrating the system\u2019s ability to safeguard against flooding.<\/p>\n

Until the project\u2019s completion, however, the barriers are only enacted when water levels are expected to exceed 51 inches. Saint Mark\u2019s begins flooding at tides of just 35 inches, necessitating the additional protective measures.<\/p>\n

Read more….<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Saint Mark\u2019s Basilica stayed nice and drying during flooding earlier this month as a result of a very low tech measure to protect it from high tide: glass barriers. image: for illustration only – Fiona Newton<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sector-newsblog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35317"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35317\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35318,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35317\/revisions\/35318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=35317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=35317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}