Physical Module: Venice
I have chosen the city, Venice for this assignment. As I mentioned in the introduction, I have been in Venice previous summer and I want to explore this site in more detail.
Geomorphology and Climatology
1) How did your selected city, town or village’s physical landscape form?
i) What are the geological processes that contributed to the formation of your site?
ii) What are the climatic processes that contributed to the formation of your site?
The place, where Venice is located, is characterized by the transitional climate type between the continental and Mediterranean climate zones. The place of the city is located at forty five degrees of north latitude. Mediterranean Sea plays a crucial role in the climate of the region that is analyzed. This location of the city provides a pleasant temperate climate, characterized by relatively small amplitude of the weather. It should be noted that Alps surround the territory of the region of Veneto in the north. So, it prevents the flow of cold north winds.
Venice is the city of the south, the summers are long and hot, and the winters are mild, rainy and foggy. The city experiences the high humidity throughout the year, which “goes sideways” in the summer, combined with high temperatures. The period between October and March is known for seasonal floods that occur in Venice at least one time per year. However, the serious consequences of the heavy rains, which raise the water level by more than 1.4 meters, the city has experienced one every three years. More than ninety percentages of streets and squares are flooded with so that people can move only by boat. Sometimes, the cause of the flood is a hurricane “sirocco” that catches up huge waves to the lagoon. But snow is quite rare in the winter in Venice.
It’s still cold in Venice in March. It is chilly and cloudy. Spring is quite good in the middle of the season in Venice, when the magnolia blooms, buds are on the trees, and the sun shines each inch of land. Rains are short-lived and do not spoil the warm weather. The air is heated to 16 °C in April, and to 21 °C in May. The opening of the bathing season is in the last month of spring in Venice.
Summer starts in June in Venice, when the air temperature is around 24 °C-25 °C. The thermometer soars to 29 °C and often passes for 30 °C in high season. Rainfall is a permanent phenomenon in the summer. Frequent thunderstorms are another feature of the summer pore. Sky remains sunny and clear after the last storm. The sun shines for at least nine hours per day in summer.
A gentle weather with lower temperatures is imposed at the end of the high season. The sun is no longer dangerous, as in July or August. Autumn is a second breath of the beach season in Venice. The minimum and maximum temperatures are 10 °C and 18 °C accordingly in October. The amount of precipitation increases in October and November. This time is a period of hurricanes. One of them has led to the huge flood of the entire city at 1.49 meters in October 2012 ("Venice Lagoon Islands. Italy Heaven", 2016).
The winter is quite unpredictable in this region. It is relatively mild, but is characterized by the heavy rainfall, accompanied by icy Arctic winds. The sky is often with gray clouds. The sun appears in the sky no more than 3-4 hours a day. Daytime temperatures range from 6 °C to 8 °C. The last winter month is the warmest in Venice. Also, Venetians hold a well-known annual carnival in February.
2) Describe the geomorphology of your selected site’s area. You may include descriptions of the rivers/streams, swamps, deserts, topography, rocktype, and landforms.
Islands, on which Venice is, are located in the Venetian Lagoon. It should be noted that a term “lagoon”, which has entered into many languages of the world, is formed from the name of the small bay. There are at least one hundred and eighteen islands in the Lagoon. All islands are around eight percentages of the Lagoon’s territory. Additional eleven percentages are territories of deeper water or channels. The rest eighty percentages of the territory are so-called “salt marshes”. The territory of Venetian Islands was a marchland before forming the first settlements. Formation of the Venetian lagoon began in 800 BC in a swampy area, where presumably prehistoric settlements are existed.
The average height of the Venetian islands above sea level is around five meters. The main islands of Venice include a big group of small islands, which are divided into two parts by the Grand Channel. There are also such islands as Lido, Burano, Murano, Giudecca, Torcello and others (Imboden, 2016). There are no rivers on the islands. The issue of the drinking water was the crucial for Islands settlers until the twentieth century.
3) What water resources exist on or near the site? Include a discussion on aquifers, which are natural water bearing rock units, and man-made water units such as reservoirs and water storage towers.
The city, Venice is located on the islands, which are surrounded by sea water of the Venetian Lagoon. Thus, there are no natural drinking water sources in Venice. In this case, clean drinking water was a big problem for the inhabitants of Venice. For example, huge number of wells were made in the Middle Ages in order to supply the city with drinking water. These special facilities were made by people in order to collect the rainwater. This method worked for a long time.
When Venice was flooded, the drinking water became more expensive. Perhaps that is why Venice is a record city for the number of water intake facilities in Western Europe. According to official sources, there are about 2.5 thousand of wells in Venice. However, historians said that the number of all wells was close to seven thousands earlier. Modern Venetians do not use wells, because taking water from them on any need is prohibited by the health standards. They were blocked by metal grilles in the 60s of the 20th century in order the residents of the city could not take out the water at their own risk.
Venetian wells significantly different from those that were built on themainland. During the Middle Ages, people did not know what is the clean drinking water. The wells collected mostly rainwater, which was subjected to several steps of the purification. According to the modern standards, it was not suitable for human consumption, but the Venetians had no alternative at that time, and so they had to use this water. Historians considered that such wells contributed to the spread of epidemics, because during the floods muddy seawater overflowed into the wells.
At the same time, the outer part of the Venetian wells deserve special attention. All water wells had lids. The most common material, which was used to them, was a stone. Each cover was fitted with a lock. A special person, who was in charge of a particular water facility, kept the keys from wells lids. Wells worked in accordance with the special schedule. During their opening, the bells rang, drawing everyone’s attention.
The first plumbing was made in Venice only around one hundred years ago. Since that time, sewage facilities have been mobile in Venice. The boat arrives to the house and pumps sewage waste every few days. Venetians have already adapted to the specific smell, but the real problem comes when pipe, which is located just in water, breaks somewhere
4) How has your landscape’s physical form changed or evolved?
This part describes the changes (both natural and anthropogenic), which have been happened within the chosen site during last years.
i) What climatic processes contributed to the change? e.g rainfall, hurricanes:
The main processes, which are related to the climate changes, are floods. It should be noted that there were at least six huge floods in Venice during the twentieth century. Over the past one hundred years Venice has plunged under water by twenty three centimeters, and the Piazza San Marco, that is the lowest place of the city, is flooded now about hundreds of times a year. The population leaves the city. Almost 100 thousands of local residents have already left Venice over the past fifty years.
Venice together with the neighboring city Chioggia has suffered from temporary bouts of floods caused by exceptionally high tides that occur in the northern Adriatic Sea each year, between autumn and spring. The phenomenon is known locally as “acqua alta”. Flood “Aqua Alta” is periodical, it is similar to some tides, which reach their maximum in the Venetian Lagoon.
Acqua Alta occurs when the tides, which are caused by the moon’s gravity, coincide with a strong sirocco. It is a warm wind blowing across the Mediterranean. It is pumped from the Adriatic Sea to the Venetian lagoon. It occurs in approximately mid-October to early December. It is a periodic phenomenon that lasts for three – four hours during high tide. As soon as the water goes down, everything goes back to normal. Water can survive a little longer, especially if there is a strong sirocco, but is guaranteed retreats every six hours.
ii) What geophysical processes contributed to the change? e.g. river bank erosion, wind erosion:
Wind and sea erosion are the main processes, which can adversely impact on the buildings, houses, well-known palaces, bridges in Venice. At the same time, it should be noted that the main islands (Riva and Alto) are protected from the open Adriatic Sea by the narrow strip of the Lido Island. It can protect from the huge waves. At the same time, the coastline of the islands, especially, their south part is suffered from the sea and wind erosion.
iii) What human processes contributed to the change? e.g. mining, intensive agriculture, grading for development:
It should be noted that the initial image of Venetian islands has been strongly changed by people during several thousands of years. As we know, the initial landscape of the islands was swampy terrain with the sparse flora and fauna. These islands were flooded several times a year and it would seem that they are not suitable for human life. But, this region was a good place for fishing. That is why; first settlements have appeared more than 800 BC. Originally, the area was inhabited by tribes, which were engaged in fishing, salt production and sea trade. An intensity of the commercial traffic, which link the Adriatic with central and northern Europe, has led to the appearance of new settlements in this area.
In this case, the initial landscape of Venice is extremely changed by people in order to satisfy all their needs in the desirable level of city life, trading and rest. Nowadays, the island part of Venice is connected with the mainland (region Mestre) by the one bridge. Electric trains and buses operate between the mainland and island part of Venice.
All structures and buildings in Venice are built on wooden piles driven into the soft ground of the islands at a depth of 3 to 10 meters (Davis and Marvin, 2004). The piles are arranged as a palisade. The platforms of interconnected oak and larch logs are stacked over piles. The third layer is presented by the stone foundations. For example, the base of the church of Santa Maria della Salute is built on more than a million oak, alder, larch piles. Such construction continued more than two years. Another example – stone bridge of Rialto stands at twelve thousand piles. A large area of forests has been cut down in Dalmatia and converted into the foundations of Venice’s buildings. Since the twelve centuries Venetians have consistently pursued the construction of canals and dams, which can help to transform the river flow into the Adriatic Sea, bypassing the Venetian lagoon. Also, people had to fight with the sea. The onslaught of the waves sometimes destroyed the sand bar that separates the lagoon from the sea. Venetians had to strengthen its shores (Marshall, 2015).
The first defensive walls were built in the fourteenth century and regularly strengthened. The old walls were replaced by “muratstsi” in the eighteenth century. They were constructions with the length of more than five kilometers, which were built of earth mounds and large stone blocks. There are continuous observations of buildings and their level above the sea in Venice since the beginning of the twentieth century.
Natural Resources
5) What natural resources were indicative of your site or were found near your site in the past? Discuss any relationship between resources or between those resources found on your site and those resources adjacent to your site in the past:
As we know, Venice has a bright history, especially from the twelfth century, when the Venetian Republic was in the prime and occupied territory along the northern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Crafts and trade were the main occupation of the Venetians. In this case, there are not non-renewable resources on the island part of Venice. At the same time, mainland of region is well-known of such natural resources as silica sand, soda and limestone. These resources and some others were used by artisans for manufacturing so-called Murano glass and different goods from them.
One more natural resource could be fish, because quite many fishermen were at Venice in the past.
As for renewable resources, sea and sand were the main natural resources in the past. The favorable geographical location was the main base of forming great state on the territory of the modern Venice and adjacent lands in the past.
6) What natural resources are indicative of your site today? Discuss any relationship between resources or between those resources found on your site and those resources adjacent to your site currently:
Nowadays, island part of Venice is directed to the development of tourism and trade. One can say that current crucial natural resources are the same. They are the sea and sand and the whole landscape of Venice with its various canals warm weather.
There are no any mining plants in this part. All fabrics, which are located on the mainland part of the city, also engaged in manufacturing industry. The main natural resource that contributes such development of the city is a sea. Nowadays, Venice is one of the biggest ports and transportation hubs in Italy.
One more relationship between past and current resources can be manufactured of Murano glass and goods from it. This industry revived in the nineteen century and is in demand in our days.
7) What climatic processes contributed to any changes in the natural resources of the past versus the natural resources of today? e.g. glaciation, global warming, change in rainfall:
The main climatic processes, which contributed to changes in the natural resources, were flooded. They were the main reason of such processes as water erosion. Coastline of many islands was suffered from strong waves and floods. Global warming can negatively impact on the natural resources today. Water level increases in Venice more often than it was earlier. The territory of Venice has already slipped by more than twenty centimeters only in the twentieth century.
At the same time, there are no any other important climatic processes, such as glaciation or earthquake, which can impact on the current natural resources.
8) What biological process contributed to any changes in the natural resources of the past versus the natural resources of today? e.g. over foraging, insect infestation, dominant species, diseases such as Dutch elm disease):
Agriculture was not important for the inhabitants of the island and the mainland part of Venice. Only fishing was a popular occupation of this territory. All products, which were supplied to the islands, were grown on the mainland (Padan Plate). In this case, one can say that Venice was depended on the regular product delivery from other regions.
9) What human processes contributed to any changes in the natural resources of the past versus the natural resources of today? e.g. mining, development, road construction, harvesting:
Active construction of palaces and other buildings has led to the soil subsidence of islands, on which Venice is founded. One more activity is drilling artesian wells for fresh water. It also has led to decrease in the average height of the city above sea level. Increased number of inhabitants of the island part of Venice were the main reason of accumulation of garbage and waste, which primarily polluted canals and the Adriatic Sea. In this case, fishing becomes dangerous, because the fish could eat the waste and would be unsuitable for use in food.
As we can see, all human processes negatively impacted on the natural resources of the territory of Venice.
Resource Use
Land Cover/Land Use
10) Describe the pre settlement land cover of your landscape? This is the land cover that existed before the Europeans settled the area:
Almost all territories of island part of current Venice were presented as wetlands with trees and shrubs. This territory was inhabited for a long time. Thus, analyzed territory was not very suitable for human habitation. It was a place of untouched nature. The first tribes that settled in this area, were engaged in fishing, salt production and trade.
11) Describe the past land uses of the site. How did the presettlement land cover influence the land usage?
It should be noted that the territory of Venetian Lagoon is characterized by quite favorable geographical location. A narrow strip of the Lido Island protected lagoon and coastal areas from pirate attacks. Such advantage of the Venetian Lagoon was the main reason why this territory reached a high development in the Middle Ages.
12) Describe the land uses that exist in your landscape today?
Originally, the area was inhabited by tribes, who hunted fishing, salt production and sea trade. The intensity of the commercial traffic, that links the Adriatic with central and northern Europe, has led to the development of new settlements in this area. The biggest of them was Altino. Residents of the mainland took refuge in the lagoon from the raids of the barbarians, who ravaged the domestic territory, since the fifth century. Thus, the type of the land use was gradually transformed to the urban use. Housing construction and forming of real state was started in this territory.
Important religious structures, such as the Patriarchate of Aquileia in Grado and bishops Altino to Torcello were appeared. After barbaric invasions under Byzantine rule in the sixth century, only a narrow coastal strip around lagoon belonged to Venice. Over time, Venice became one of the most important trading ports and a meeting place between East and West, creating ideal conditions for the emergence of enterprising merchant class, which during four centuries transformed the city from a once small outpost of Empire into a powerful and independent sovereign of the seas.
Nowadays, the island, Venice is the so-called “city – museum” and the seaside resort. The type of land use was urban before twenty first century, but now the land use of the historical part of this area includes, primarily, recreation. All industry on the island part of Venice serves the needs of tourists. At the same time Port of Venice has kept its global significance. The development of Venice is of particular concern of UNESCO, the Government of Italy and the whole world community. Due to the changes in sea level, Venice is gradually sinking into the water. A lot of money is invested in order to save Venice.
Such big islands as Murano, Burano and Lido are also included in Venice City. Their land use combines urban use and recreation. Main factories, which produce the famous Venetian glass, are located on the island of Murano. Initially, all the workshops were located in Venice. But the Grand Council decided to make glass melting furnaces outside the city: «per motivi da sanita», as it marked in the decree. The main reason of it was the high fire danger.
Indeed, in the last decade of the thirteenth century, all the glass factories were registered on the small island of Murano, which is located in two kilometers to the northeast of Venice. Since that time, Venetian glass making is inextricably linked with the separate island, and the glass has the name “Murano”.
One more island, Burano, is famous by its laces. Island, Lido is well-known by its sand beaches and clear sea water. Nowadays, almost all territories of Venice are engaged in tourism. Almost each building in Venice is a historical monument and is included to the Venice’s list of showplaces.
For example, the historical center of modern Venice amazes tightness and an abundance of magnificent historic buildings. Many palaces were built in an original Venetian style, which was influenced by the east (Venetian Gothic formed from elements of Gothic and Moorish style). The streets in Venice are canals. The main of them is the so-called Grand Canal.
13) Discuss the relationship between cover types on your landscape and land use activities on your landscape?
As it is mentioned above, modern Venice is built on the islands, which are cut by multiple channels. Such landscape cover combines with swamps and wetlands. Inhabitants of the Venetian Republic used oak and laches piles in order to build first housing. It should be noted that laches piles are not rot in the sea water, but instead harden and solidify. In this case, landscape cover contributed urban land use. At the same time, water canals provided the main transport ways, which are used until today.
The main transport in Venice is a river tram. There is the water taxi, which is used mostly by tourists. The historic form of transport is the eleventh-meter long gondola, which is curved in a crescent. It has kept the refined form and a strict black color. It is designed mainly for tourists. The island system is fenced off from the Venice Gulf by narrow and long islands-plaits (Lido and others). At the same time, nowadays, island part of Venice is connected to the mainland by two parallel bridges (rail and automobile).
There are about four hundred public and private bridges in Venice, which connect more than one hundred islands, on which the city is built. Most of them are made of stones, and other commonly used materials – wood and iron. The longest bridge is Freedom Bridge. It connects the island and the mainland of Venice, crossing the entire lagoon. The main artery that divides the city in half is the Grand Canal, which is spanned by four bridges. The oldest of them is the Rialto Bridge, built about in the sixteenth century. It is formed by two side and one central ramps with benches on either side. Second is Bridge Academy, third is Scalzi Bridge, and finally, the fourth is the bridge of the Constitution, built in 2008, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava.
Thus, one can say that islands with canals become the historic part of Venice. The main type of current land use is recreation.
Resource opportunities and constraints
14) What physical characteristics of your landscape and natural resources of your site have affected or influenced the area’s development?
Chosen landscape differs by positive physical characteristics as well as negative ones. The main characteristics of the landscape, which can contribute its development, are the following:
favorable geographical location, which can prevent settlements from pirate attacks;
access to the mainland and Adriatic Sea simultaneously;
close proximity to the river Po and Padan Plate;
close proximity to the Byzantine Empire. It should be noted that Venetian Republic got huge territories after Byzantine Empire had disbanded;
close proximity to the region Dalmatia. This region is famous of its forests. When this region was a part of the Venetian Republic, many trees were cut down for the construction of palaces, churches and ordinary houses in Venice;
weather and climatic conditions in general. The chosen territory is located in the Venetian Lagoon and is characterized by the warm weather the whole year. The climate of the chosen territory has some features of temperate and subtropical climate. This city is not seen frosty winters or very hot summers, but there are short-term and frequent rains. High humidity is characteristic of the summer and fog is in the winter. The average annual temperature of this territory is around 14 ° C;
dense coniferous forests. An initial land cover of the modern territory of Venice was wetlands with the forests. All forests were cut down by people in order to build housing and palaces. Almost all initial flora of Venice is disappeared. Some territories of forests and parks are saved on the islands Giudecca and Lido.
proximity to the sea and great abundance of fish in the Venetian lagoon and the in the bay with the same name.
15) What physical characteristics of your landscape and natural resources of your site have deterred (limited) its development?
The territory of modern Venice is quite interesting. There are no areas, which are similar to the chosen one. At the same time, such characteristics of landscape as regular floods and deforestation have adversely influenced on the development of the place. One more limitation of the chosen site is absence of drinking water on the islands. This problem forced people to use not always clear rain water. This was the main reason of different epidemic in the Middle Ages.
All above mentioned characteristics of place limited its development in the past. At the same time, human impact and hew technologies allowed people to build a lot of houses and bridges on the island part of Venice and to make Venice as a great tourist center in all Europe.
REFERENCES FOR PHYSICAL MODULE:
Davis, Robert C and Garry Marvin. Venice, The Tourist Maze: A Cultural Critique Of The World's Most Touristed City. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2004. Print.
Imboden, Durant. "Murano, Burano, And Torcello Self-Guided Tour". Europeforvisitors.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 25 May 2016.
Marshall, S. "Jewels Of The Venetian Lagoon; SARAH MARSHALL Rediscovers The Forgotten Islands Of Floating Italian City Venice". South Wales Echo (Cardiff, Wales) 2015. Web. 25 May 2016.
“Venice Lagoon Islands. Italy Heaven”. Italyheaven.co.uk. N.p., 2016. Web. 25 May 2016.
