Pressure measurement
Keeping Venice afloat T
High accuracy pressure transmitters from Keller are helping to keep Venice afloat through their integration into the foundations of the city’s flood prevention system
he idea that Venice might sink into the sea has been circulating in the media for many years now. Around one
hundred years ago, the city was 25 centimetres higher out of the water than it is today. When its industries moved to the mainland in the 1960s and began to grow and expand rapidly, there was a great need for fresh water, and Venice therefore decided to pump groundwater out from under the Venetian Lagoon. That’s when the city began to sink. The problem was actually identified in the 1960s, and Venice then began restricting the volume of water that was pumped out – but this could not stop the process entirely. The situation was exacerbated when the channels in the lagoon were expanded to accommodate ships travelling to Mestre. Tourism also increased and the water connection from the city to the Adriatic Sea was widened. The huge amount of water thus introduced carries sediment away and out of the lagoon, and this phenomenon is being reinforced by the effects of global warming. Over the years, various proposals were
presented to deal with the problem, but there were also corruption scandals and protests by the local population. Finally, the parties involved agreed to launch a project known as M.O.S.E. (Modulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico – “Electromechanical Experimental Module”).
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Concrete element with maintenance walkways and supply conduits
This flood prevention project uses moveable
flood gates installed at the four entrances to the Venetian Lagoon. The idea is to protect the historic centre of Venice from floods that are becoming ever more frequent. The concept is not completely new, as similar flood barriers have also been built in London (Thames Barrier) and Rotterdam (Maeslant Barrier).
When a flood aler t is issued, the four
entrances to the lagoon are closed off using floating barriers. The flood prevention system consists of a total of 78 movable elements. The technology used here is tried and tested, as it is been employed for quite some time at the gates of large ship docks. MO.S.E. is a lot bigger, however, and its gates are also
May 2019 Instrumentation Monthly
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