Venice is known as one of the world’s most beautiful canal towns, but the region’s iconic gondolas are no longer floating down its famous waterway system.
Low tides and little rain have caused the canals in Italy’s ‘City of Water’ to completely dry up, The Local reports. Water levels are around 70cm lower than normal levels, leaving the wood-panelled water taxis stranded in banks of mud.
The first half January was said to be the hottest in at least 250 years in Italy, with average temperatures 4C higher than the seasonal average, according to a local Meteoweb forecast.
Rainfall has also been significantly lower than the average for the time of year and exceptionally low tides – not helped by this week’s ‘Super Blue Blood Moon’ – are thought to have contributed to the lack of water in the area. It’s not the first time the canals have run dry, though.
Unusually low tides in 2015 and 2016 meant Venice experienced some of its lowest water levels since records began, exposing large patches of mud and silt around the city.
“In winter low tides are common,” a city council tidal officer explained to a local newspaper in December 2015. “But these levels are way below normal: it’s a small record.”
According to local experts, heavy investment in flood-barrier projects has resulted in a lack of money to support the removal of mud and sediment from the canals, a report by The Independent noted.
Along with the lack of waterways maintenance, residents in the city have also expressed their concerns over the high numbers of tourists who flock to Venice daily. An estimated 30 million visit every year, while the historic town itself has only around 55,000 inhabitants. In November, Italy’s government decided to ban large cruise ships from the Grand Canal in a bid to limit tourists.
