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Venice Sees Near-Record Flooding

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The city of Venice, Italy, faced the worst flooding of its famous canals since the devastating floods of 1966. Venice has suffered major economic impact from this new round of flooding, with Mayor Luigi Brugnaro predicting that the damage will cost hundreds of millions of Euros, and claiming climate change is to blame.

The recent flooding paralyzed many local businesses, forcing schools to close and disrupting the city’s bustling tourist industry. When the salt water of the canal rises, it can destroy centuries-old architecture and wipe out entire inventories.

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And since insurers have refused to provide flood coverage to Venetian businesses due to the ever-present flooding threat, costs can surge even more.

After the 1966 floods, the city began planning a sea barrier to combat the increasing flooding, called the Mose Project, but it has largely languished since then, reportedly due to corruption and delays. The barrier consists of gates that rise with the tide to prevent flooding at different inlets of the Venetian Lagoon, the bay surrounding Venice. The project has been formally underway since 2003 and has cost billions of Euros so far, with its engineers now predicting the barrier will be in place by the end of 2021, while others say 2022.

As the floods have gotten worse, Venetians have taken to the streets to protest the city’s mismanagement of flood prevention and response measures, as well as tourist cruise ships that produce waves they allege have eroded the city’s foundations. Venice has also seen a slow trickle of people leaving the city, as the constant flood risk has made life and business operation untenable for many. According to NBC News, of about 53,000 residents in the city’s center, Venice lost over 800 residents last year alone.

As with many recent extreme weather events around the world, some experts believe the floods may be the result of climate change. Environmental economist Shouro Dasgupta told NBC News that the frequency and severity of the city’s floods have increased significantly. “Since 1951 until today, we have had 21 severe flooding events,” he said.

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“Out of those 21, 13 have been since 2000 and, out of those 13, eight have been since 2012.”

The Venice city council reportedly rejected measures to combat climate change minutes before floodwaters actually reached the council chambers. Pictures of the flooded government chambers posted by city councilor Andrea Zanoni went viral—an ironic symbol of official inaction in the face of climate change’s effects. Zanoni told CNN that the council rejected measures to fund renewable energy, to make city buses (currently running on diesel) “more efficient and less polluting,” and to address the local use of polluting stoves and plastics.

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The council’s president, Roberto Ciambetti, refuted the assertion that the city’s government was ignoring climate change, citing budget provisions dedicated to fighting air pollution and smog.

Venice Flooding

Last week, the United Nation’s Environment Program released a report stating that countries must increase their carbon-cutting measures dramatically to prevent warming of 3.2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. The report noted that the many of the world’s 20 richest countries, which are responsible for 78% of global emissions, have not committed to reducing their emissions to zero. Italy is one of the few countries that have made this commitment, albeit as a long-term target.

Dr. Doom: “With Italy Too Big to Fail, Too Big to Save … The Endgame for the Eurozone has Begun”

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As the eurozone troubles continue to mount, there is a growing consensus that “muddling” through won’t be enough. Critics say that more immediate and drastic action must be taken, namely by Germany and France, before the negative watch warning for the ratings of France and the regional bailout fund, the European Financial Stability Fund, potentially becomes something that matters.

One man, however, doesn’t think the disparate governments that can make a difference will.

And it’s a guy who knows a little about forecasted meltdowns.

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According to the New York Times, in 2006, Nouriel Roubini, an NYU economist who has been nicknamed Dr. Doom, “laid out a bleak sequence of events: homeowners defaulting on mortgages, trillions of dollars of mortgage-backed securities unraveling worldwide and the global financial system shuddering to a halt. These developments, he went on, could cripple or destroy hedge funds, investment banks and other major financial institutions like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.”

As the tale goes, the IMF audience he spoke to were skeptical to say the least. Some likely thought he was a funny little man.

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Others thought he was nuts.

Unfortunately, he was correct.

Now, he is predicting a major European recession, one large enough to spread worldwide.

Roubini predicts Europe’s leaders “will reach something of a compromise, but it won’t be sufficient” to solve the problem of too much government debt.

They will agree that “fiscal austerity and reforms will be necessary,” but those changes will only depress growth, leading to lower tax revenues and a deepening debt crisis. Eventually, investors in European bonds “will see they are insolvent,” he said.

“With Italy too big to fail, too big to save, and now at the point of no return, the endgame for the eurozone has begun,” Roubini said in a recent written assessment.

Hopefully, Doom won’t strike twice.

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Science-Challenged Italian Government Considers Not Predicting an Unpredictable Earthquake Manslaughter

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Seeing as how anybody anywhere actually predicting an earthquake would likely be enough to win them the Nobel Prize (and maybe a Pullizter and the Heisman Trophy while we’re at it), I had the exact same reaction to this headline as acclaimed baseball writer Jonah Kerri: “I swear I thought this was from The Onion.”

Seriously, it’s hard to believe this one is true.

But sure enough, the Italian government has lost its mind, charging its nations top seismologists with manslaughter for failing to predict a 2009 quake that left 308 people dead.

A shocked spokesman for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) likened the accusations to a witch hunt.

“It has a medieval flavor to it — like witches are being put on trial,” the stunned spokesman told FoxNews.com.

Enzo Boschi, the president of Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), will face trial along with six other scientists and technicians, after failing to predict the future and the impending disaster.

Earthquakes are, of course, nearly impossible to predict, seismologists say. In fact, according to the website for the USGS, no major quake has ever been predicted successfully.

“Neither the USGS nor Caltech nor any other scientists have ever predicted a major earthquake,” reads a statement posted on the USGS website. “They do not know how, and they do not expect to know how any time in the foreseeable future.”

For the Italian scientists’ sake, let’s hope nothing comes of this and that the charges are soon dropped — something that the head of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is rooting for.

Alan Leschner, chief executive of AAAS, said his group wrote a letter to the Italian government last year [after word of the investigation first became public] — clearly, to no avail.

“Whoever made these accusations misunderstands the nature of science, the nature of the discipline and how difficult it is to predict anything with the surety they expect,” Leschner told FoxNews.com.

The case could have a “chilling effect” on scientists, he noted.

“It reflects a lack of understanding about what science can and can’t do,” he said. “And frankly, it will have an effect of intimidating scientists … This just feels like either scapegoating or an attempt to intimidate a community. This really seems inappropriate.”

I know almost nothing about seismology. I know even less about geology.

But I do know that humans can’t predict earthquakes. Frogs may be on to something. But humans are not even that close.

So while I do understand that the Italian government may be upset with the “imprecise, incomplete and contradictory information” given by quake scientists in a meeting held (coincidentally) less than a week before the deadly fault line broke …. manslaughter?

Get out of here with that.