From Deseret News archives:

Is climate change eroding European monuments?

Published: Sunday, June 10, 2007 12:08 a.m. MDT
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
ROME — For centuries, Europe's monuments have withstood earthquakes, fire and plundering. Now cultural treasures from the Colosseum to Westminster Abbey could face new threats from climate change, a study says.

Increased rains in northern Europe could wash away layer after layer of ancient stone, while rising heat in southern and central Europe could cause age-old monuments to crack and disintegrate, according to the European Union-funded study.

Experts have long warned that a rise in sea levels attributed to global warming threatens low-lying areas, including treasures like Venice or sites in flood-prone regions.

But the three-year study didn't look only at the catastrophic impact of storm surges, landslides and floods. It also took into account the slow erosion that Europe's cultural heritage could suffer from climate change, said Cristina Sabbioni, the study's coordinator.

"We needed to put this problem on the table, because so far it has been politically ignored," said Sabbioni, a physicist with Italy's National Research Council.

Climatologists, chemists, geologists and biologists used projected climate data to predict how marble, limestone, wood and other materials commonly used in ancient buildings would fare in future weather patterns until 2099, Sabbioni said.

Story continues below
Researchers produced a "Vulnerability Atlas" of Europe, with maps that indicate which areas will suffer an increase or decrease in risk factors, from damage caused by salt crystals to corrosion of medieval stained-glass windows.

According to the study, lower humidity during the summer in Britain, France, northern Spain and central Europe will increase the amount of salt deposited on monuments.

This is especially dangerous for the region's Gothic cathedrals, whose elaborate carvings are made of soft porous stone that absorbs sea salt from the air. Once the water evaporates, the salt crystallizes and puts pressure on the surrounding stone, Sabbioni said.

"If the salt is deposited on the surface, the damage is aesthetic, and this is a dramatic problem for frescoes," she said. "But if it is absorbed we have internal breakup of the material."

Less rain in southern Europe will force authorities to spend more money to clean monuments blackened by pollution, while an expected rise of precipitation in northern Europe could wash away an increasing amount of ancient stone each year.

Comments

You can be the first to comment on this story.

Image
Associated Press

The Parthenon temple in Athens may suffer damage due to temperature fluctuations.

previousnext

Latest comments

I haven't been able to get this out of my mind. It truly is the stuff of...

9 bear cubs headed back to woods

Why is the division of wildlife releasing the cubs at this time of year? As...

BYU football: 5 keys to victory

Utah 73 BYU 0

Congratulations on your win over BYU! I knew Utah was going to beat BYU...

LDS members are in the MLB spreading the gospel, and if Nash does happen to...

especially since SUU lost 4 seniors last year. They have no idea what the...

Editorial: Food is not the enemy

My first question to you is, "How much do you weigh?" Second, "If you are...

We've watched you all your TV life and are thrilled you won, besides you are...

could not have said it better myself. also jerry after this year please retire.

Baseball player on mission in Wash.

he should have had the guts to follow his dreams. even though he'll never...

Advertisements