pres- Between land and sea cap2

In the words of Farinelli: “To become facts, events or forms must be organised in a model, which is created beforehand and is therefore able to assign a meaning to them, in which the spatial and temporal dimensions are inextricably linked and dependent on one another. What we must realise is that a map incorporates a form of reasoning in itself – it already expresses a connection before any sign appears on its surface”. What then is the model which “precedes” the drawing of maps and the themes with which they are associated? Aware that the available material was mainly local, we nevertheless sought to keep sight of the broader context, basing our work on three principles. The first point of reference in our conceptual model is that of an integrated approach, encompassing both terrestrial and marine environments. On a global level, this approach has found expression in the basic scientific principles of the LOICZ project (Land- Ocean Interaction in the Coastal Zone), and has also been adopted in international programmes on climate change (IGBP, International Geosphere Biosphere Programme). Although it was originally conceived for a study of the capacity of estuaries to metabolise nutrients, the approach stresses the importance of the interface between land and sea (lagoons, coastal areas, river mouths, transitional waters) and the need for coordinated and integrated studies. Recently (June 2005) this approach was updated and given a new focus with the concept of “Coastal fluxes in the Anthropocene”. The term Anthropocene4 is a neologism used to describe the most recent period of the Earth’s history, beginning in the 18th century, when human activities began to have a significant impact on climate and terrestrial ecosystems worldwide. The word was coined in 2002 by Paul Crutzen, winner of the Nobel Prize for chemistry, who sees the influence of human beings on the Earth in recent centuries as being so significant as to constitute a new geological era. The second conceptual point of reference is the integrated management of coastal areas, which was defined in 1989 by the International Coastal Zone Workshop as: “… a dynamic process in which a coordinated strategy is developed and implemented for the allocation of environmental, socio-cultural, and sustainable multiple uses of the coastal zone”. The European Union defines Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) as an approach based on a number of common principles: the need to conserve the physical, ecological, cultural and social environment of coastal areas; the need for integration between different sectors and different players (in society, the economy, and institutions at various hierarchical levels); and the need to create participation and consensus in the strategies adopted. The third point of reference is linked to the relatively recent proposal that the Lagoon of Venice should be recognised as a Ramsar site As far back as June 1996, the MedWet (Mediterranean Wetlands) secretariat organised an international conference in Venice which concluded with the Venice Declaration, containing a formal strategy for the conservation of Mediterranean wetlands. On that occasion, the Italian Ministry of the Environment presented a national plan for the application of the concept of the “wise use” of wetlands. In addition, a procedure for designating the whole of the Lagoon as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, be committed, before the 130 nations that are signatories to the Convention, to the principle and objective of preserving the Lagoon and its ecosystem. All human activities in the Lagoon – industry, tourism, transport, etc. – should be governed according to an integrated, overall plan, the objective of which is the recovery of the true ecological character of the site. Until now, most of the resources available have been allocated to safeguarding the historic city, but the designation of the Lagoon as a Ramsar site should lead to protection being extended to the entire Lagoonal system, the integrity of which is now believed to be essential and fundamental for the physical survival of Venice itself. We believe that the three points of view underpinning our conceptual model all point to the need for the integrated study of mainland and sea (LOICZ), and for a coordinated strategy to achieve multiple environmental and socio-cultural uses of coastal areas which are sustainable (ICZM) and which promote the wise use of coastal environments (Ramsar). UNESCO has added to these principles by stressing the importance of the development of an ethical dimension within ICZM, and specific guidelines have also been drawn up within the ambit of the Ramsar Convention. It is important to reflect on the past and present role of the Lagoon for the city of Venice, and vice versa. Much has been written on this theme, and there are interesting parallels in this context with the debate over the start of the Anthropocene period. Crutzen suggests the end of the 18th century, when carbon dioxide and methane in polar ice began to increase considerably. In Venice, this period coincides with the end of La Serenissima – the Republic of Venice. Some authors have described the policies of La Serenissima as “ecological” (and/or sustainable) e su questo ci sarebbe da and on this point there is scope for much debate. In reality, the chief engineer of the Venetian Republic Cristoforo Sabbadino had a holistic vision of the Lagoon as an organism, ruled by a single controlling power and subordinate to the will of Venice (the heart), which for this reason had also conquered the adjoining mainland area, whose rivers debouched into the Lagoon. The Lagoon was, however, considered to be the property of all: it enabled the community to live and prosper, a watery rampart defending the liberty and independence of La Serenissima. The perfectly understandable desire on the part of private citizens to exploit particular areas of the Lagoon were, almost from the city’s origins, tenaciously resisted and subordinated to the public interest, as many archive documents confirm. Another fundamental point for the organisational model of the Atlas was the time reference: for Venice we must necessarily limit the start of the Anthropocene to the 20th century, thus taking the last century as the starting point for the morphological (and socio-economic) upheavals that have led many authors (not only scientists) to speak – with varying degrees of authority – of “non-sustainability”, “marinisation of the Lagoon”, “Venice like Disneyland”, “damaged Lagoon” etc. However, it must be recognised that not even this vision of degradation is shared universally, as the discussion over the link between the economic development (present and past) of this area and acceptable environmental damage is still very much alive. The question is still hotly debated and touches the lives of thousands of people every day: is there a price to be paid for the development (i.e., wealth) achieved in the last 40-50 years by most of the inhabitants of northeastern Italy? And if the answer is yes, is it right that this price should be paid with environmental health and quality? When facing questions of this magnitude, some authors have spoken of the concept of “ecological debt”. Ecological debt is defined as the quantity of resources and environmental quality that some parts of the rich world have taken for their “development” from other parts of the world, by exploiting their territory and/or raw materials, thereby making those exploited countries “creditors”: the Lagoon of Venice seems to be well-qualified for a part in this scheme, and to be considered an “ecological creditor” towards the rest of north-eastern Italy.

[1] Farinelli F., 2004 (our translation).
[2] LOICZ II Inaugural Open Science Meeting. Coasts and Coastal People-Scenarios of Change and Response, 27-29 June 2005, Egmond aan Zee, Netherlands.
[3] Crossland C.J., Kremer H.H., Lindeboom H.J., Marshall Crossland J.I., Le Tissier M.D.A. (eds.), 2005.
[4] Crutzen P.J., 2002, 2005.
[5] CAMPNET, 1989.
[6] Doody, J.P., Pamplin C.F., Gilbert C., Bridge L., 1998.
[7] The Ramsar Convention, to date signed by more than one hundred countries and with more than 900 Wetlands identified in the world, is the first modern international treaty for the protection of wetlands, upholding the principles of sustainable development and conservation of biodiversity.
[8] The International Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat, better known as the Ramsar Convention, was signed in Ramsar, Iran, on 2 February 1971 by a group of countries, scientific institutions and international organisations participating in the International Conference on Conservation of Wetlands and Waterfowl. The Ramsar Convention was a response to the need to reverse the transformation and destruction of Wetlands, the primary environments in the life of aquatic birds, which must follow particular migratory routes over many countries and continents in order to reach their various nesting, wintering and resting sites each season.
[9] UNESCO, Coastal region and small island papers 11,Chapter 5 Ethical Dimension ().
[10] Resolution VIII.4 on Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM). Valencia, Spain, 18-26 november 2002.
[11] Bevilacqua P., 1995.
[12] Marzollo A., 1995.
[13] Ghetti P.F., 2000; Tiezzi E., Marchettini N., 1998.
[14] Ravera O., 2000.
[15] Guerzoni S., Raccanelli S., 2003
[16] Martinez Alier J., 1992; Ortega Cerdà M., Russi D., 2003; Martinez-Alier J., 2002.