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Underlying plate tectonics are also to blame, thanks to the subduction of the Adriatic plate beneath the Apennine mountains. This, combined with the groundwater being pumped out from under the city and a gradual rise in sea levels, has resulted in the city very slowly sinking. Built on a muddy lagoon with inadequate foundations, the ground beneath it has slowly compacted over time. It’s long been known that Venice suffers from subsidence. The wash from cruise ships and other motor traffic in the increasingly busy lagoon exacerbates the erosion of these foundations.īut the acqua alta could be being made worse by an altogether more long-term concern: the city is slowly sinking. Water moves more quickly in the lagoon as a result, causing more tidal extremes that bring high water at one end of the spectrum and the exposing of wooden building foundations, causing them to rot, at the other. The increasing frequency with which the acqua alta occurs is thought to be a consequence of the management of the lagoon – in particular land reclamation and the deepening of underwater channels to accommodate tankers. This fact of Venetian life may be alarming to the uninitiated, but it’s not an immediate cause for panic and it’s not why people say ‘visit Venice before it’s too late’. As a visitor, your trip may not coincide with this phenomenon, but if it does, you’ll find St Mark’s Square temporarily turned into a lake and raised boards provided for you to walk on. If you’re familiar with Venice you’ll probably already be aware of the ‘acqua alta’, or ‘high water’, which affects the city numerous times a year at higher tides. Is Venice sinking? When will it happen? Venice’s waterways are what makes it such a unique and romantic place, but does a watery fate lie in store for this enchanting city? And if so, when will Venice sink? Acqua alta