Relative sea level rise and Venice lagoon wetlands

A comparison of the speciation and fate of mercury in two contaminated coastal marine ecosystems: The Venice Lagoon (Italy) and Lavaca Bay (Texas)

“…Tidal flow has become exaggerated because channels have been deepened for large ship traffic. These factors, combined with anthropogenic resuspension, mean that Venice Lagoon is now a net exporter of sediments to the Adriatic sea, losing, on average, ϳ1.1 million m 3 or 0.2 cm yr Ϫ1 (Day et al 1995). The circulation patterns introduced by tidal cycling through the three openings in the barrier islands (the Lido, Malamocco, and Chioggia inlets) creates regions in the lagoon that are hydrologically isolated from one another, confining the majority of the pollution to the northern basin, which makes up ϳ270 km 2 in surface area (Marcomini et al 1995).…”

210Pb and 137Cs as chronometers for salt marsh accretion in the Venice Lagoon – links to flooding frequency and climate change

“…As in many coastal systems, salt marshes in the Venice Lagoon serve as habitats for terrestrial and marine organisms, filters of terrestrial inputs to the lagoon and buffers against coastal erosion. However, riverine sediment input into the lagoon has been almost completely eliminated, and long jetties constructed in the inlets have greatly reduced the import of coarse marine sediment into the lagoon (Day et al, 1998a). As a consequence, erosion and subsidence, particularly in the last century, have caused three-fold reductions in the area of marsh in the Venice Lagoon to about 40 km 2 at present (Day et al, 1999).…”

Rapid response of tidal channel networks to sea-level variations (Venice Lagoon, Italy)

“…Water exchange between lagoon and sea occurs through three inlets (named, from north to south, Lido, Malamocco, and Chioggia, respectively) stabilized with long jetties that, since their construction, have greatly reduced the import of marine sediments into the lagoon (Day et al, 1998). Moreover, a few tributaries are responsible for scarce freshwater and sediment inputs.…”