Venice is the worst in 50 years flooded cocoons of the city lived the city “to its knees,” Venice mayor Luigi Brugnaro is tweeted as the water much of the famous historic city under water. The floods Basilica of San Marco, a 1000 years of church history invaded the Byzantine be considered one of the best examples of architecture in the world and one of the most famous monuments of the city. While floods are a normal part of life in Venice, which is built on a famous lagoon on the edge of the Adriatic Sea, it has never happened with such frequency. Experts say that climate change is likely to blame. But put in place protection measures has proven difficult, and, ironically, the Venetian Council voted against a measure to combat climate change only a few moments before invaded his room. Flooding is one of the many effects of climate change that is experienced more often and global threat that many areas and regions endangered. It is a threat that not many experts say that the – the damage caused by climate change World Heritage. Natural and man-made heritage sites around the world are endangered, fundamentally changed, damaged or destroyed by climate change. Climate change will affect these pages in radically different ways. Some will be affected by the flooding, such as Venice, other extreme weather events or other rising temperatures. For example, George Town, the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang is rising sea levels, severe landslides and typhoons, while the Yellowstone ecosystem is in the US western snowmelt, more frequent forest fires and changing me ecosystems. The sea change will have a major impact on many of these sites. Heating water threatens to kill a lot of corals of the Great Barrier Reef, while the rise in sea level off the great archaeological sites of the world, many washing threaten – including the Neolithic village of Skara Brae in Scotland. Although many experts will be very expensive to say that the solutions will these sites to save changed. Mechtild Rössler, Director of the World Heritage Center, says once the countries to work together to protect the must share strategies for cultural heritage. UNESCO, for example, allows countries to “share experiences things that have worked, -. And the things that have not worked,” Adam Markham, deputy director of Climate and Energy Program of the Union of Concerned Scientists, says that if the TIME world wants to save these sites, countries will have to share and financial resources. Even if a city can expect as famous as Venice likely massive international support, the lesser known sides can collect more demanding surfaces. “When cities have the technical structure and available resources, much can be done to keep it back,” says Roessler. “But especially in the development of a lot of money to manage these cities or these historical sites, they are dependent on international aid, both, or simply can not go to customize.” A look at precisely this issue, TIME looked like the following World Heritage sites that are in danger because of climate change – and as scientists, park staff and archaeologists are working to save them. Venice Few places in the world are threatened by climate change as Venice. While the city on marshy land is built on the edge of a lagoon, its existence has always required to maintain a careful balance between the city and the natural world. But in recent years, climate change has threatened to throw it off balance. Venetian has always lived with floods, often caused by the phenomenon known as “acqua alta” – high water – these are unusually high tides. However, this kind used to be relatively rare floods, because the Mediterranean has in the past had not significantly tides. But as sea levels rise, this kind of ebb and flow – and cause floods have become more frequent. In November this year, Venice has recorded a three-event record “High Water” in a week according to the Associated Press. Chiara Bertolin, associate professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, said that the dirty, take the salt water in the precious materials that forms in buildings and monuments of Venice and lead them to expand, crack – or even bubble and explode . “If the salt penetrates the materials of these buildings, crystallized, and rises vertically as soon as the weather is dry,” architect Kobi Karp told Architectural Digest. Bertolin says that the historical character of the buildings means that are more resistant materials which can not only replace and this can make it difficult to take adaptation measures, “it is necessary to clean slowly very slowly and not force it dry,” says Moraes. Markham says that one of the most frustrating things about Venice is that it has already invested billions of dollars in a project – MOSE – to build 78 blocks in the lagoon of Venice. It was, but is expected during the project completed in 2012 again, was delayed by technical problems, red tape and alleged corruption. “You have their act together and come at least try,” says Markham. He warns that no matter what, Venice risks losing a bit ‘of the historic building. The water is getting higher and higher may jeopardize the building and its foundations to undermine its structural integrity. “I think there will always be some level of flooding in Venice to be. The question is, the flood has become catastrophic that you simply can not keep the buildings as they are now,” says Markham. Skara Brae in the Orkney Islands Climate change also threatens the archaeological sites around the world. Some of the most vulnerable areas are those along the coast – as the Neolithic village of Skara Brae in Scotland Orkney Islands. The village was 3200-2200 B.C.E. inhabited overlap with the time when Stonehenge was built. Markham says that Skara Brae special is that most of the European countries of his time were made of wood, the village has been done in this special stone place. This means that you can better understand how people like the stone bench actually lived -as get where they sat, and the remains of his heart. Archaeological sites may be even more vulnerable at times after they were discovered, because they are open to the elements, Rossler warns. But if Skara Brae, the greatest danger is that it could be “literally washed off,” he says. While there is a quay wall is to protect the site, it is unstable and could eventually be hurt; the area not protected by the wall eroded visible after the storms. “You might wake up one day and will not be there,” says Markham. Scientists are working to measure the extent of the threat to the site Skara Brae. Experts say that some coastal areas may be protected by dikes, breakwaters and the restoration of the dunes. But because there are so many coastal areas only in Scotland, experts warn that protects all of them would be too expensive and take too long. Yellowstone a great natural space like Yellowstone, the acres 12-22000000 protection includes (depending on how you measure) in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, it is to protect other than a city or historical landmark. Yellowstone will not be swept into the ocean and disappear, but warns that Markham could look very different, as amended by climate change, even though the changes may be slow for most visitors notice immediately. Over time, expect that changes the composition of plants and animals that live in the park – the country has less can mean forest and scrub. “It will be an extraordinary ecosystem, but it will be a slightly different ecosystem,” says Markham. He cautions that scientists and park rangers who want to protect them, should “go with the flow” as the ecosystem changes. The climate variations can have a domino effect that many aspects of the ecosystem achieved both in the park and in the region. For example, changes in snow accumulation and melt rates, the flow of water in rivers reduce that community outside of the region depend on for drinking, agriculture, energy and other purposes. The flow variations capable of generating the fish, the influence and expand the promotion invasive species. The Park Service of the United States work of Yellowstone National Park more resistant to climate change to be done. For example, such as beetles and fungi have damaged the park whitebark pines, scientists have been working on white bark plants can better withstand the fungus. However Whitebark pines are probably driven at higher elevations than the rising temperatures, by the NASA Earth Observatory. George Town, the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang as the world warms, scientists say that the unusually strong hurricanes could become more frequent. Combined with the rise in sea level, this is especially threatening to historic areas in many cities, often built low and sit near the sea. Georgetown, the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang, is at risk because of its historic range is low. The city, which was a colonial city and commercial center, was famous for its multicultural heritage, including the unique architecture and varied. However, the buildings are made of wood, which means that they are prone to rot and insect damage if they get wet. heavy rainfall, as caused by typhoons may also lead to landslides, the historic descent towards areas can flow and the people that inhabit it. To address the flooding Penang has announced plans to implement a “sponge-city model”, the water should be absorbed by porous surfaces. The proposed project would connect green spaces to absorb and clean drainage and the construction of water retention areas and rain gardens. China also announced to implement urban technologies as a sponge in cities around the country. The Great Barrier Reef few World Heritage sites are vulnerable to the effects of climate change than the north-east Great Barrier Reef. Coral around the world will be more and more towards the “bleaching” – is white – which can lead to mass deaths. Corals bleach when they are under stress, in particular of higher temperatures. The researchers found that there was a 89% decrease in the deposition of eggs of new corals of the Great Barrier Reef and the situation could be worse. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warns that if the ball warmed by 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Celsius), 70-90 percent of the corals in the world would decline– but when the ball warms two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), more than 99% of the coral was clear. “In any case, lose a lot of coral reefs and much of the Great Barrier Reef will be among them,” says Markham. Australia has sought to help protect the reef launched which includes a plan to combat a starfish eat coral and an initiative to stem the outflow. But Markham says it’s really just a way to really save. “If you talk to the coral reefs, biologists, actually there … The only way that we, the Great Barrier Reef is able to save to slow global warming,” says Markham. “Coral reefs are completely destroyed by climate change on the ground. There is just no doubt about it.”
It’s not just flooding in Venice. Here is how climate change threatens world heritage Anywhere
