Venice has a history of flooding
that goes back hundreds of years. It is a city built on the water
that has canals instead of roads and sits only centimeters above
sea level in some places. It is also an incredibly popular city
for tourism and boasts some of the richest history and architecture
in Europe. Every time the city floods (which is numerous times
every year), more damage is caused and when you factor in: rising
sea levels, higher tides and the fact that the city is actually
sinking... You end up needing a big solution for a big problem.
The MOSE construction project
is designed to eliminate flooding in Venice when it is completed
in 2012. It will involve a series of huge, submerged gates that
will rise out of the water and block the rising water from entering
the lagoon and flooding the city. There will be a row of these
gates at all three lagoon entry points and each one will be underwater,
invisible until the threat of high water arises. Once activated,
the gates will have air pumped into them and this will cause
them to rise up and block the flow. A few hours later, after
the threat has passed, they will be lowed back down. |