Venice faces existential threat from rising seas; experts debate desperate survival options
Rising sea levels could drown Venice within a generation, and the existing MOSE barrier system is already being overused, prompting scientists to consider drastic measures such as lifting the city or building permanent walls.
Centuries-old Venice is confronting a climate-driven crisis that could render the UNESCO World Heritage site uninhabitable by the end of the century. Sea-level measurements show a 32 cm rise in the lagoon over the last 130 years, and the frequency of extreme tides has surged, with 18 of the 23 worst events happening in the past two decades. The MOSE project, a network of 78 tidal barriers costing at least $8 billion and commissioned in 2020, now operates 20-30 times annually—far exceeding its original design expectations.
IPCC climatologist Piero Lionello says the system was built on a severe underestimation of future sea-level rise and may only function for another 30 years in a worst-case scenario. Experts outline four potential paths: injecting seawater to reverse subsidence, erecting a permanent ring wall around the historic core, sealing the lagoon with massive levees to create a coastal lake, or relocating key monuments to higher ground. Each proposal threatens to alter Venice’s unique relationship with the water, its economy, and its cultural fabric.
Why it matters
Venice’s possible loss would erase a unique cultural landmark and affect tourism and heritage worldwide.
In this story
