the undisputed champion of tough political talk off the beach on friday you know facts everybody understand the place that you enter the conflict zone join to sebastian as he holds the powerful to account this is the fix for your whichever way you like to spin it conflict zone w. by roy it's venice shouldn't really exist with its 124 islands and countless bridges and kells this city in northern italy was built in the middle of a marsh. it's proof of human or dayshift snus and our ability to march to nature. shows that there are many beautiful cities in the world but venice is in a class of its own. every year more than

$13000000.00 tourists come to marvel at the palazzo surround the grand canal. these stately townhouses are architectural masterpieces built using techniques that are unique worldwide. then seems to float waitress lee over the water but in fact the entire city stands on a forest of wooden tiles 10000000 logs were driven into the mud contrary to all prevailing rules of evan construction. the architects of the time conquered the lagoon to build one of the world's most extraordinary cities but the water is a continual threat even today. then this is palaces withstand the danger posed by the board all will they gradually see.

the history of the n s began more than one and a half 1000000 years ago in a large stretch of course in the northern mediterranean on the adriatic coast of italy. then again on the southern edge of the else is 50 kilometers long and 10 kilometers winds. at one time it consisted of brackish water sand and mud and inhospitable place of little interest to anyone. then in the 5th century coastal inhabitants discovered the lagoon as a refuge. of the lagoon was a natural fortress it was very difficult for enemies in their sailing ships to find their way around here only the locals knew all the channels so they didn't have to

build walls or. even architectural historians like to neteller columbia know very little about the 1st welling's built this area. that is imagining there are just a few paintings which give us an idea of what things may have looked like on riata island so the core of the settlement with its straw thatched wooden huts was located on reality of the cost of the only up any more than i thought the 1st buildings in ancient venice were built on the most stable areas of the namely out o. comes from alto which indicates a high location by the river with the name of the district also dura includes the word for solid the early city was built at sites like the 3 of us in. those beginnings we're still centuries away from the venice of palaces and bridges

we know today. let's just finished. and slipped on small islands separated by boards. each island had a small village with a similar structure essential an open space with houses around it and a church in the middle. because you've got to be that explains why there are so many churches and small squares here because they were the centers of these all the micro towns and treat them all. over the centuries the small islands were linked by bridges which were often built over the water at strange angles. in the 2nd century building space gradually became scarce. the problem could only be solved by developing new manmade areas but

that was far from easy the bed of the nicotine consists of sediment and much crisscrossed by numerous water courses building ground that was in constant movement. in one of the on a hill logically speaking this is neither solid ground nor the sea the ground varies considerably on the one hand almost it is characterized by the sands of which the rivers transport on the land. out in the reeds there are pizza oils and a totally different consistency so venice is built on various layers of different density and that makes for problems why do we see so many slanting church towers. because they are not standing on just one type of substrate. then this is church tile is leaning to one side but they do not topple over.

so how did architects manage to build on this difficult ground without the buildings collapsing. the secret is to be found in simple wooden posts. hundreds of thousands of them were driven into the bed of the lagoon. at depths of 3 to 8 meters below the surface architects had discovered a layer of sedimentary clay known as kind until beneath the mud. by driving the posts into this layer of clay a stable building foundation was made possible. civil engineer dean archie morley explains the principle was the father would be to in order to stabilize the building substrate piles were driven into the bed in each area. it's efficient piles are used in the areas then so that with water the mud between the piles becomes compressed and thus more stable than everything outside the area the piles keep everything together and prevent the substrate from being washed out that's the

principle behind ground stabilization of the body. in this way the venetians created man made areas on which an entire city could gradually be built. because architects had discovered that the wooden piles did not cross in the mud. the poles that up underneath the buildings in the mud. that come in and clear in oxygen free environment since none of the microbes that would normally think a would can get into that. the wood undergoes a process of mineralization it turns rock hard and remains intact for centuries. the most famous the mission buildings were constructed on this building ground of

mud and wood. st mark's square with its balance how it stands 18100000 foot in piles. the foundations of the real to bridge rest 112000 piles. and more than $1000000.00 wooden tiles were driven into the lagoon for the impressive last saluting basilica which is built of marble. there are between 8 and 10 i wouldn't piles research where meter about this was the entire city stands on an incredible number of. so it's rather like the opposite of a forest. here the troubles are function like roots it's. all in all an estimated 10000000 wouldn't piles have been driven into the look of

a large proportion of what used to be the northern italian forest. predominantly oak and large trunks from the surrounding regions were shipped to the lagoon to create extremely expensive building ground. to. the foundation which accounted for half the construction costs the other half went on the buildings themselves so the section under water was just as expensive as the part we can see. on. all of them this is 400 plots a stand of these unique foundations. from the 11 a century these architectural masterpieces were built on the constantly moving bed of the lagoon and the sandbags in order to build them the architects had to come up with something special because they faced several times at once. it meant

providing protection from the rising and falling some people said. designing buildings that were as light as possible. and building on a moving substrate. the solution they came up with was brilliant they placed a wooden construction on the piles and weighted down with several layers of bricks . on top of this they build to surround a white stone from history on the age we are seeing it formed the 1st line of defense against the salt forces. that deals with the interface between the water and that resist an infinitely long time because it's not climate bill to this salty water. the resistant strain stone is unaffected by the rise and fall of the seed forcing. the heights of this protective full corresponded to the tidal range in this way the

water was prevented from coming into contact with the most sensitive load bearing brick or. look at reason the palaces on the stone base were designed with the maximum of 3 floors. they understood when they were building that they couldn't make it to have a because they knew that it was all relatively stress mud into not equal talons that still compacts and cause the subsidence. slender columns and large windows in the efforts to build with minimum wage the architects created the special venetian style elegant and graceful. despite the lightweight construction method by no means had all the challenges been overcome.

him is more then because the movements of the ground in the water here are so variable the buildings themselves could not be too rigid. but here to the venetians came up with clever solutions like using special regional building materials such as law and mortar. it was used in the construction of the brick walls applied as a cement substitute it has the advantage of remaining flexible. less sure. obama along the vine was probably the most important construction material because of its adaptability so that it doesn't get as hard as cement they say architects always wanted to build what they wanted and how they wanted not to be restricted the materials. to remain flexible in the future to me of the vision done with god. that also applied to the flooring between the stories. they used wood which is also a flexible material. another trick and should flexibility with the wall and the

floor joining. me the beams were set in the walls in such a way that they could always move within them. flexible and supple venetian buildings are like living organisms which adapted form to the vagaries of the moving substrate. today the traces of this constant adept tension are visible in many places in the form of distorted facades here and there cracks appear inside the buildings as well . although there have been a couple of instances of subsidence some for sods have become distorted and tilt slightly but not one of the venetian palaces has ever collapsed the grolier.

this is architects constructed the buildings so well that they can even withstand the frequent earthquakes in the region. i remember my father in law telling me about when there was the earthquake in for you only in the 1970 something and venice felt the shocks of that very strongly and where we live as very big windows you know with lead holding the panes of glass and he said that the windows just moved like the sails of a boat and then came back in place not one of those little things craft can sell out. there is a well. in the courtyard of every plots and by developing a sophisticated system for collecting rainwater venice is brilliant architects solve the problem of the city's drinking water supply. water flowed through these

holes in the ground and into the underground chambers filled with extremely fine sand. after seeping through the sand and the clean water then rose again in a well shot ft. in this way they also wanted to conduct the water from the gutters into the wells it really was an ingenious system one unparalleled worldwide you're all these wells were still in operation in venice until the early 20th century concealed if you know all the needs of the military. every square in the city has a well in all its architects created $900.00. by the late 15th century venice had 170000 inhabitants more than ever before this is he was in its heyday thanks to its powerful fleet of ships built in the queen's shipyards venice dominated comus in the mediterranean region. the

city goes on water was totally in its element like a fish and water. divinations had created an architectural jewel in the north italians are good. but nature was to turn on them in a dramatic way. as a result of human interference in the green system of channels to facilitate shipping new dangers began to threaten the blossoming influential city. the earth was having a serious effect on the bed of the lagoon and the title was a levels. the natural balance in the good it was under threat.

centuries later venice is still a proud and beautiful city but over the centuries the lagoon changed completely. shipping traffic and industrial utilization increase dramatically and left their marks in the course of industrialization a 1000 wells was sunk in order to access the groundwater beneath the better for the good. in the 19th fifties up to 40000 cubic meters of water removed every day. civil engineer peter t. a teeny describes the consequences for venice these generate. the careers of the pressure. and when the pressure of the trees in the bay easing so the mentor amazing the mason is these producer compaction off the sidelines and

a lowering of the land surface look right now we call it subsidence land subsidence . as a result of this learn subsidence venice subsided by 14 centimeters in the early 30 years. after a disastrous flood and $966.00 the practice of pumping up the groundwater was discontinued. but the damage to the city is irreparable the last 14 centuries has can never be regained global warming and rising sea levels are increasing the threat and have already seen the water rise by a further 10 centimeters. in all the water is now $24.00 centimeters higher up on the buildings than at the time they were built and that. left visible traces. most of the affected areas can be recognized by the green zones on the buildings this is where the water rises and falls with the time. it's not major floods that

are causing the greatest damage to the city but try to change down so look we're looking at the water comes and goes incessantly. with each new time to the salt water is now also reaching the bricks another falling the architects centuries old preventative measure has the ring of history in stone can no longer protect the palaces from the ocean. the water is always against the break and the bricks are very hard and. leaving behind the souls which crystallize and as salts crystallize they expand in the body and 12 times i'm not that is a very kind of slow way you can say exploding brick.

to some torso is also attacking the line most have between the bricks loosening them and weakening the entire building structure. to provide more stability more and more steel barry is having a wreck today in the city's canals. today one in 3 venetian finance is damaged and to need a friend of a ship. and that is not only the result of the daily tide change much about its are an even bigger problem they stir up the water above and below the surface. just get us out of it by the constant boat traffic it's very bad for the masonry. the boats propellers turn up the water which edition. only the roads the walls. once the masonry has been weakened. the water also impacts the foundations on the ground. and hold it in boats are always travelling past the building. it's the number of

boats and the frequency of boat traffic that is threatening the walls. gets into any cracks in the brickwork and thracians the entire building structure it also uses the compacted earth between the piles the centuries old foundations on which the building stand in the attempt to limit the damage the city has introduced a speed limit for water taxis. to launch cruise ships which head for the diggin every day are a 3rd of the problem. these big 6 moves huge volumes aborted you know that's our communities principle there's still a body of wisdom at the bottom of this it's that smooth and when they're in there are too dense to get all the way through old narrow little jim as the local

level rises and then goes down again with the passage of the ship it's like i wash water that moves within you know over tens of seconds or 0 minutes and that's very detrimental to the building foundations. subsidence of the lagoon bed the rise of the water level and the waves created by boats and ships mean that venice is threatened from all sides. the only way to save the cities valuable buildings is to drain the canals for basic restoration work but that's must be done with great care. but in the queue to go a lot of work only takes place and drain sections with a maximum length of 50 meters. draining the canals leads to a settling of the geological layers and that can result in damage to the

neighboring. so a canal can be drained or longer than 3 months. today more modern methods are also being applied in order to stabilize the walls chemicals are introduced into the lime mortar. they prevent more to getting into the bricks all these measures are carried out by having. that is why restoration work in venice is more expensive than elsewhere at present the city has no more than 2000000 euros a year available for preserving its buildings but the actual some need it is 13000000. the water to which the city owes its uniqueness and its wealth is now turning against the venetians. today one 3rd of the ground fills in venice uninhabitable. and rising water is threatening the buildings more and more often.

global warming which is resulting in a gradual rise in the sea level will intensify this development even more. understand the kiddies venice is destined to go under that is not my prediction but that of people who deal professionally with marine and climate issues you know the prediction that has been down from the end of the sun for me they say that the sea level should be rise by lots and you think 20405060 something means that. the demise of venice no longer seems to be merely a pessimistic scenario. and so once again the ingenuity of italian i. architects and engineers is called for to save the city. or. the most

a project is an elaborate and expensive attempt by the italian authorities to say venice. concrete foundations weighing many tons have been sunk at all 3 look him in let's look at in them and flood gates at high walls had these can be raised as far as the water level requires. but there is no doubt that if it is ever completed the most a project will be an engineering masterpiece. but skeptical voices warn against euphoria. in most usa the most a project is important but it's not the sole solution it's inconsistent i believe to want to protect the city from super floods without at the same time protecting it from decay. that is why another idea is to raise the subsided bed of the lagoon and with it the entire city. what sounds like

a crazy plan was developed by researchers at the university and neighboring powder well. it certainly was full blown. on our own ass sukumar shape will be the yarmouth or don't you know me interests and we inject the water into it quite obviously. you know. he's located between the 601 tower song need to be told the day like moon walk on. raising such a huge area with an entire city on it is an ambitious enterprise which no one has ever attempted before. the plan is to pump 50 liters of salt water per 2nd. the wells and into the substrates over a period of 10 years researchers have calculated the bed of the lagoon could be raised by between 20 and 25 centimeters. the water level in the canals with then

sink by the same amount but the plan is not without risks if you cannot during. the shortest time we don't want. any any structural. and for this amazing thing you have to do to inject the same stuff re. raising the bed of the lagoon would recover the last $24.00 centimeters the project is still in the planning stage researchers are waiting for funding for the 1st comprehensive tests. to would prove possible to save the masterpieces of venetian architecture from the consequences of human made problems. no one wants to see this city go under venice nice visionaries like those who built it people who will think the impossible in order to achieve something magnificent.

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play play play. and uncertain political future plans for the. for the pot idea on a grid come columbine said she would step down the spot the governing city scrambling to deal with the for not what does good decision mean for the government and the nation's future.