Without any protective intervention, the historic city of Venice and its surrounding islands would suffer rapid deterioration due to the increased frequency of tidal flooding, as the gap between land surface and sea levels has reduced due to a coupled effect of climate change-induced sea-level rise and natural and anthropic subsidence.
Geotechnics of Venice and Its Lagoon provides a clear and comprehensive illustration of the extensive geotechnical aspects of not only the various environmental problems such as land subsidence and wetland surface reduction, but also solutions such as the design of the tilting gate foundations against high tides and the restoration and improvement of the drainage system of the renowned Piazza San Marco, which have been necessary for the preservation of the extraordinary cultural heritage of Venice. Readers will gain a better understanding of the complex phenomena occurring in the sensitive Venice silts, whose hydro-mechanical behavior has required comprehensive laboratory and site investigations and modeling. The book provides:
- An authoritative analysis of one of the largest and most important geotechnical issues in the world
- A description of a detailed case study of an ongoing engineering solution
The book will be useful for engineers worldwide, and is also an excellent reference for students.
1. The recurrent flooding of the lagoon city.
2. Geology of the lagoon.
3. Subsidence of Venice.
4. Site and laboratory geotechnical investigations.
5. Venetian soil constitutive modelling.
6. Geotechnical behaviour of defense structures.
7. Geotechnical monitoring of marshes and wetlands.
8. Long term behavior of historical building foundations.
9. Safeguarding Piazza San Marco.
10. Concluding remarks.
Biography
Paolo Simonini is Professor of Geotechnical Engineering and former Dean of the School of Engineering at the University of Padova, Padua, Italy, and a full member of the Italian government's Council for Public Works.
