AA Landscape Urbanism Delta Urbe by AA Landscape Urbanism MArch/MSc

D E L T A

U R B E

a speculative approach to consequential landscapes

Fernando Blanco Shruthi Padmanabhan

ARCHITECTURAL L A ND S C A P E

ASSOCIATION

U R B A NI S M

S E P T E M B E R

2013

2014

2 0 1 4

D E L T A

U R B E

a speculative approach to consequential landscapes

Fernando Blanco Shruthi Padmanabhan

AA LANDSCAPE URBANISM STAFF 2013 / 2014

Program Directors Alfredo Ram铆rez Eduardo Rico

Studio Master Clara Oloriz

Tecnical Tutors Ignacio L贸pez Bus贸n Vincenzo Reale Giancarlo Torpiano

Models, Methods and Theories & Argument Tutor Douglas Spencer

Machining Landscape Tutor Tom Smith

Cover. Po delta river branches with maximum flood areas Figure 01 (previous pages). Po di Maistra river mouth (picture taken during field trip to site) Figure 02 (top & right). Approximation to delta land formation in the subsiding context of the Po Delta

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Materials in landscape architecture are physical fragments of remote quarries, factories and forests and their production is responsible for landscape transformation elsewhere.... ....Designers participate in this monumental shifting, reorganiztion and recycling of materials around the globe, the great majority of which is bound as urban parks, buildings and highways.â&#x20AC;? 01 Jane Hutton

ACKNOWLEGEMENTS UniversitĂ degli Studi di Ferrara

CIRCE. UniversitĂ IUAV di Venezia

Latitude Studio

Prof. Umberto Simeoni Prof. Corinne Corbau

Prof. Francesco Guerra Prof. Mauro Calzavara

Arch. Marta de Marchi Arch. Fabio Vanin

Consorzio di Bonifica Pianura di Ferrara

Cooperative Pescatori Eridana

PhD. Eng. Alessandro Bondesan

Pres. Sandro Mantoan

Parco Regionale del Delta del Po Emilia-Romagna

Parco Regionale del Delta del Po Veneto

Pres. Giovanni Gabbianelli

Eng. Alessandro Andrello

Figure 03 (top). Sacca degli Scardovari (picture taken during field trip to site)

DEDICATIONS

Shruthi wants to dedicate this book and project to her parents for their support, and to her friend Rahul Paul, a well experienced and trusted adviser.

Fernando shares this book and its content with all the people that were part of the experience of a year at the AA, and specially with his parents for their wisdom and support.

Introduction ESSAY

The Changing Nature of Deltas Consequential Landscapes. river reciprocity Delta Formations. typologies and composition Deltas at Risk. subsidence

A PanEuropean Atlas of Deltas The Continental Scale The Regional Scale. four european deltas

ESSAY A Historic Reconstruction of the Po Delta A Political Delta. the role of the venetian republic in the Historic Deltas. a chronology of the ancient po delta

Geomorphology of the Po Delta Delta Architecture. distributary channels, sediment formations, Delta Catalogue. intuitive formation, branching rules, and

Social Intersections in the Po Delta Delta Actors. local agents, engineered delta, land reclamation,

ESSAY DELTA URBE

INDEX Narrative for a speculative Delta Landscape

ESSAY

Page

and soil composition

Page

landform typologies

Page

aquaculture and methane extraction

Page

Ecology for Economy: a critique on landscape urbanism

Page

Design Strategy

Page

Strategy Guidelines

Page

Design Typologies

Page

104

Design Chronology

Page

110

Landuse Strategy

Page

128

Territorial Intersections

Page

142

Conclusion

Page

154

Cartographies of Propaganda: mapping with a political agency

Page

158

Figures, Notes and Bibliography

Page

164

Appendix

Page

170

Drawing Utopias: the Garden City and the Utopian Thought

Perceived Territory: map

fabrication of the modern po delta

Figure 04 (top). Po di Maistra coastal marshlands (picture taken during field trip to site)

INTRODUCTION

introduction

Figure 05 (top). Initial stage of a speculative territorial intervention for the Po delta based on the forces of the river and the sediments carried by it

introduction

“The delta areas in the world are dynamic systems where considerable natural resources interact with high population density and significant production potential. These areas of confluence between fresh and salt water are among the most active and innovative areas on the planet, where fast- growing metropolises compete with wetlands with a high level of biodiversity: however the conflicts between the needs of the land and those of the water that for centuries have continually redesigned the geographies of these territories and the civilizations that inhabit them, in recent decades have dramatically reduced the resilience of these areas.”2 Deltas are rapidly changing environments, easily affected by human interventions happening both upstream and downstream. Thus, they can be understood as manufactured landscapes that are the consequence of a distant one that has been previously intervened. Also, as ones that are modeled by the continuous interaction between two opposing water bodies: rivers and oceans. These are fragile territories, as Maria Chiara Tosi explains in the book “Toward an Atlas of the European Delta Landscape”. Any design proposal thought or planned for deltas must address this fragility by guiding a modification of the territory based on the natural phenomena that formed the landscape and the potential social activities that could take place in it. Historically, the variation in the course of the river and its branching into multiple streams has led to the reshaping of the deltas themselves. Land starts emerging where it was not expected, first as long and narrow strips resulting from the mixture of clay and sand, and later as constituted land suitable for human occupation. As a result, the concept of land reclamation becomes the main tool through which society interacts with these changing landscapes and sets the rules for its occupation. The Po Delta, in Italy, is one example of this continuous process of reshaping of the land. Through the concept of Land Reclamation society has set the rules for its occupation by manipulating the balance between land and water. Today, one thing becomes clearly apparent: this is a heavily engineered territory. It has undergone intensive projects, throughout centuries of human struggle against water, that have secured the land and its inhabitants from floods, but in the process, the machine which informs the changes has been stopped. The The Po Delta, just like many other deltas in the world, has been frozen in time against its own nature. The design proposal presented in the following pages rethinks the organization of the territory by accepting the potential of change inherent to deltas. The existing infrastructure for water management can be used to redirect the water to form new land, understanding it as a supplier of material, and flood others. The proposal becomes a continuous process in which each decision taken has a consequence on the rest of the territory; for every land that emerges another may erode. The project, then, is always on the making, each time giving the possibility for reshaping the landscape through new spatial and social intersections.

ESSAY

Cover. The Island of Utopia, in Thomas More, Utopia. Louvain, 1516. Sir Paul Getty KBE-Wormsley Library, Oxford

DRAWING UTOPIAS: the Garden City and the Utopian Thought By Fernando Blanco Utopian Thought: interpretations

origins

and

early

“The History of ideal-city design is, to a great extent, a story of architects and others who dream of mastering the world. It is that of so many blueprints, invented by the human intellect, for the best possible city and society. In many cases, it is a tale of immodesty.... The belief that it can ignore natural contextual conditions, often in the name of conformity to universal laws to whose secret solution only an élite holds the key.” 1

Lewis Mumford (1972) claims that the word Utopia has been commonly understood as a substitute for that which is “unreal and impossible”2. But it is better to think about it as everything that does not belong to our known world, but that exists in our personal or collective depictions of the better world to which we aspire. Before going deeper into the analysis of what constitute any given representation of Utopia, it is important to clear some other related terms. Ruth Eaton (2002) quotes J.A. Murray’s Dictionary when defining the word idea as “Any product of mental apprehension or activity, existing in the mind as an object of knowledge or thought; an item of knowledge or belief; a thought, conception, notion; a way of thinking.” Eaton suggests this is a much more generic interpretation of the word, that only became of common use after the sixteenth century. Previously, the Platonic interpretation described the word idea relating it to what can only be perceived through the “mental eyes”3, again establishing a difference between the physical and imaginative realities. The adjective ideal, from the Latin idealis, is closely related to the latter definition of the word idea, and it describes what has achieved a higher state of perfection, almost in a spiritual sense. Therefore, it could be assumed that an idealcity is one that can only exist in the mind, in the world of ideas, as projections of built and human perfection. As Mumford points out in his essay titled “Utopia, The City and The Machine” (Manuel, 1973), since the Ancient Greece, utopias have only been thought of through the specific form of a city. Scholars agree that even the first recorded examples of human settlements, such as Babylon and Ur, became the first attempts to translate an ideal space into a physical form and arrangement

on the territory. In these early examples, “ideal cities are imagined by the human intellect as being the fruit of human endeavor, but they have much in common with the dreams of better worlds provided by the divine.”4 One reason for this association could be, as Mumford exposes, that the city offers the perfect canvas on which to project human complexities within a frame related to our own scale. The dichotomy between the built form and the human condition is what makes utopias such an interesting case study for understanding the hopes, fears and ambitions of any particular society at a specific moment in time. As it was previously explained, the thought of an ideal place is one that is apparently embedded in human nature, but it is the Greek philosopher Plato who’s probably first at giving a literary description of the ideal-city. His model is the result of a time of great social distress after Athens lost the Peloponnesian War to Sparta. It is meant to be his own version of an improved Athens, but with another name and set in a different territory, still characteristically Hellenic. Plato’s vision is not one lacking in plausibility or rationality. On the contrary, it is very much attuned with the creator’s time, place and social background, whether we might disagree with the society it proposes from our twenty first century vantage point. But Plato was much more interested in the social organization of its model city, rather than in its spatial arrangement; still, it is relevant to mention that he takes time to describe the land, a valley close to the sea, where this city-state would be located. If Plato was first at leaving a written statement of his vision for an ideal-city, Sir Thomas More was the one who coined the term Utopia, resulting from the witty combination of the Greek words topos (place) and the prefix u (signifying either “no place” or “place of well-being”). This word play is what has led to the common interpretation that the word Utopia stands in for a land of fantasy that does not exist. Utopia, as Plato’s ideal-city, is also the result of Sir Thomas More’s discontent towards the political and social circumstances of England at the time, set at a time when Europe was abandoning the customs and methods from the Middle Ages to embrace those of the Renaissance period.

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

ESSAY

Figure 01. Diagrams in Ebenezer Howard, To-morrow: a Peaceful Path to Real Reform, London, 1898. Herfortshire Archives and Local Studies, Hertford

In his book, More gives a clear and detailed depiction of the territory and its occupation: from the size, number and distance between cities, to their internal organization. Without been an architect. More is still capable of giving detailed information about the built environment, which works efficiently with the society he has envisioned. It is particularly interesting More’s artificial transformation of the territory when he describes that the island of Utopia was the result of its conquerors digging a channel around it to separate it from every other land, which can only be described as a modern approach towards the landscape. Ruth Eaton (2002) indicates that More’s proposal is an isotropic arrangement on the territory where fifty-four exact cities repeated evenly across the island, with one capital city located at its center. This configuration, dating from the year 1516, is one that could be easily identified in many urban projects representative of the different movements that made up the architectural scene during the twentieth century. Both Plato’s and Sir Thomas More’s visions of the ideal-city, represent not only a Classical but also an inherently human disposition towards what the perfect world looks like and who should inhabit it (with the terrible implications this brings and which will be later discussed). The examples that have come afterwards may vary in terms of certain spatial specificities, but they all share the same philosophical roots. In general terms, Eaton (2002) lists the ambitions and social drives behind every claim for Utopia. First, it should be achieved only through human effort even if it is spiritually inspired. Then, there’s the need to disrupt with the social establishments in order to forge a happier, healthier and more efficient society up to date with scientific and technological advances. In order to achieve this profound transformation, there’s the recognition for the need of a figure that can exercise power in order to materialize this vision. Eaton (2002) concludes the summary of the main utopian characteristics with those that relate directly to its spatial form: the blueprint will be constructed from geometric lines capable of conveying a sense of dominance over nature and time, the chosen site will be untouched or undamaged by the corrupted forces that have been left behind, boundaries will be clearly represented for there has to be a total separation from Utopia and every other territory, and there will be no future necessity for improvements

because it is close to perfection (only its emulation would be deemed acceptable).

Utopia as a Garden City “New cities well planned and thought out because the needs of all will be considered will displace the cities of today which are chaotic, disorderly, untidy because founded in selfishness. The new cities will be as remarkable for the freshness of their air as our modern cities for their unwholesomeness...cities bathed with country air, encircling and encircled by open fields and made bright and sparkling with flowing water.”5

The quote above is from Ebenezer Howard, the father of the Garden City Movement. His urban proposal has become one of the most discussed and emulated since its first appearance at the end of the nineteenth century, leading the way for the multiplicity of urban projects that were going to come in the next century under the conglomerate known as the Modern Movement. Howard’s vision was the consequence of another period of great social distress and political turmoil. As David Pinder (2005) notes in his book Visions of the City the popularity of the utopian thought by the late nineteenth century was the result of the general sense of disillusionment with the laissez-faire side of capitalism and the widespread of the socialist and revolutionary ideas. Perhaps, what moved Howard to develop his ideas was more related to the social, hygienic and aesthetic conditions present in the cities of the Industrial Revolution, and specifically London. During this period in time, European cities grew very rapidly and there were no plans that would consider the problematic of the population growing exponentially. Howard thought of these cities as the product of a selfish and rapacious society that was in a desperate need for a change (Pinder, 2005). If there was no change to the current state of things, Howard prophesized that the nineteenth century cities would be “doomed either to perpetuate the current exploitation of labour or to instigate violent class conflict”6. It seems that Ebenezer Howard’s proposal was against the urban form, when in fact it opposed their current state. He was interested in a different mode of urban living, one in which the physical environment would result from the combination of the urban and natural environments. In his vision, the physical world had to provide the guideline

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

ESSAY

Figure 01. Diagrams in Ebenezer Howard, To-morrow: a Peaceful Path to Real Reform, London, 1898. Herfortshire Archives and Local Studies, Hertford

DRAWING UTOPIAS: the Garden City and the Utopian Thought By Fernando Blanco for an evolved and more civilized society (Eaton, 2002). Lewis Mumford establishes two types of utopias: one of escape and one of reconstruction. The former leaves the world in its present conditions, while the latter seeks to transform it to create new relationships within it (Mumford, 1972). David Pinder (2005) also establishes a category for the type of utopian ideal to which Howard’s belongs to: the restorative utopia, in which there is “[a response] to the upheaval of the modern city by projecting a new spatial form that was intended to restore and shore up values about urban settlement, community, order and harmony.”7 After studying the utopian novels of contemporary thinkers Edward Bellamy and William Morris, Howard published his own ideal interpretation of the world in the 1898 book titled To-morrow: a Peaceful Path to Real Reform (later retitled as Garden Cities of Tomorrow). In it he expresses every worry previously discussed about the realities of his world, and sets the blueprint for the social reform he aspires to achieve. Howard “reiterated the progressive nature of the garden city scheme as an enterprise that might start on the small scale and face many difficulties but that could enable a transformation of the social and physical landscape, becoming ‘the stepping stone to a higher and better form of industrial life.’”8 One of the most interesting aspects of the Garden City design is its graphic representation. Ebenezer Howard, like Plato and More before him, was not an architect or an urban planner, yet the diagrams he presented contained all the information required to understand the type of society, or social interactions, he was aiming for. He was adamant in clarifying that these were not drawings meant for construction, yet they made perfectly clear the spatial arrangements of the different land uses and the pattern of organization on the territory. The general outlines of his plan are well known. Each settlement would occupy an area of 1,000 acres, must have an encircling greenbelt of 5,000 acres, and its population could not be higher than 32,000 people. Their shape would be circular, equally divided into six internal areas separated from each other by boulevards. Later, Howard included the possibility of grouping each in clusters of six, all similar in size and configuration, with one bigger city of 58,000 people at the center, “...collectively constituting a

Polycentric Social City.”9 For Howard, as well as for every other utopian, it was important to have clearly defined perimeters around his ideal-cities. They could not surpass them when its limit size was reached, therefore obliging to the foundation of a new garden city in the region. Going back to Eaton’s list of utopian characteristics, it is possible to link each one of its elements with Howard’s vision. Drawings are clearly geometrical in their construction, site location would occur on the unspoiled countryside, boundaries of the cities are clearly stated, and there is no possible scenario that would require its future modification. Regarding the social landscape it is trying to create, the Garden City also fits the general utopian scheme by aiming for the general betterment of human kind in a spiritual, intellectual and biological level (the last one been of particular relevance for Howard), and it acknowledges the necessity to approach groups of power to achieve its materializationindustrialists and financiers in this case. (Pinder, 2005) After the great reception given to the idea of the Garden City, Howard struggled to see his vision finally built. The closest he came was during the construction of the garden city of Letchworth in Britain. The town was finished, but the new social ideals never sprung. Eaton argues that the mix of social classes originally intended could not be achieved because of the cost of housing (Eaton, 2002). The influence of the Garden city scheme spread worldwide during the twentieth century. Interpretations of Howard’s vision were built in many countries such as the United States, France, Germany, Russia, Japan, and Australia. But in none of those cases was the intention to improve society in the way Howard intended to. It has become apparent that the success of the Garden City relied on its populist and commercially profitable interpretation as a return to the comfortable and peaceful- but technological up to date- life in the countryside. Howard’s drawings became then an architectural document on the ideal spatial form for suburbia, “a mode of ordering and planning space.”10

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

ESSAY

Figure 02. Barry Parker and Raymond Unwin, First plan for Letchworth, 1904. First Garden City Heritage Museum, Letchworth

The Futility of Utopia Thinking of Utopia is a very personal matter. Even if there are certain common characteristics that can be identified between each example, the final configuration will be intended to please its author primarily. This leads to the idea that there are not liberal utopias, because they are all authoritarian by nature. The narratives around some visions might tend to the socialist side of the scale, but in the end Utopia veers towards “isolation, stratification, fixation, regimentation, standardization, militarization”11 to guarantee its own survival. Also, trying to build this ideal-cities is definitely one of the most futile of human enterprises. Social betterment is a main pillar of any utopian vision, but it is also practically unachievable because it has no real consideration for human nature. The very own rigid constrictions mentioned before leave no room for some of our most essential traits: unpredictability, stubbornness, and curiosity, i.e. everything that makes us repeatedly defy the status quo. Yet, thinking about Utopia with that mental eye is something that we as a species have been doing for ages and will keep on doing. David Pinder affirms, “Morris [William] nevertheless believed that the creation of imaginary utopias could be valuable as a potential source of inspiration and hope, especially through the function of articulating and educating desire.”12

06. Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un)Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd, page 148. 07. Pinder, David (2005). Visions of the City: Utopianism, Power and Politics in Twentieth-Century Urbanism, New York: Routledge, page 31. 08. Ibid, page 35. 09. Ibid, page 36. 10. Ibid, page 55. 11. Mumford, Lewis, 1973 (1973). ‘Utopia, The City and The Machine’ in F. Manuel (ed), Utopias and Utopian Thought, London: Redwood Press, page 9. 12. Pinder, David (2005). Visions of the City: Utopianism, Power and Politics in Twentieth-Century Urbanism, New York: Routledge, page 54.

Image credits Cover Figure. Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un)Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd, page 13. Figure 01. Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un) Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd, page 149. Figure 02. Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un) Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd, page 151.

Select Bibliography Notes 01. Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un)Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd, page 10. 02. Mumford, Lewis (1972). The Story of Utopias, U.S.A.: The Murray Printing Company, page 11. 03. Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un)Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd, page 11.

Eaton, Ruth (2002). Ideal Cities: Utopianism and the (Un)Built Environment, London: Thames &Hudson Ltd. Fishman, Robert (1999). Urban Utopias in the Twentieth Century: Ebenezer Howard, Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, Cambridge (U.S.A.): MIT Press. Mumford, Lewis (1972). The Story of Utopias, U.S.A.: The Murray Printing Company.

04. Ibid, page 14.

Mumford, Lewis, 1973 (1973). ‘Utopia, The City and The Machine’ in F. Manuel (ed), Utopias and Utopian Thought, London: Redwood Press.

05. Mumford, Lewis, 1973 (1973). ‘Utopia, The City and The Machine’ in F. Manuel (ed), Utopias and Utopian Thought, London: Redwood Press, page 29.

Pinder, David (2005). Visions of the City: Utopianism, Power and Politics in Twentieth-Century Urbanism, New York: Routledge

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

Figure 06 (top). Rosolina Mare, traditional breakwater structure also used for sediment accumulation (picture taken during field trip to site)

THE CHANGING NATURE OF DELTAS

CHANGING DELTAS

80% 75% 70% 65%

60% 55% 50% 45%

40% 35% 30% 25%

20% 15% 10% 05% +

00% 05% 10% 15%

20% 25% 30% 35%

40% 45% 50% 55%

60% 65% 70% 75%

Percentage of growth/shrinkage

30% 35% 40%

Upstream River

+40 years +30 years +20 years +10 years

R a p i d g r o w t h

Gradual progradation

+10 years +20 years +30 years

Delta Coastline

S u b s i d e n c e

Po t e n t i a l f u t u r e g r o w t h

Timeline of growth/shrinkage

20% 25%

Sedimentation

Erosion Coastal

Meandering

Relative Sea Level Rise

Channels

g n i m m a D

D r e d g i n g

Bifurcation Channel

U r b a n i z a t i o n

D e f o r e s t a t i o n

80%

+40 years

R a p i d shrinkage Gradual shrinkage Po t e n t i a l f u t u r e r e p a i r

Figure 07 (top). Diagram of the consequential repercussions of human activities in the growth or shrinkage of land, based on the amount of sediments rivers could transport along its courses

CHANGING DELTAS

CONSEQUENTIAL LANDSCAPES. river reciprocity

Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, human control on the natural environment became overwhelming. European rivers have also experienced transformations by human activities with dramatic retributions. Erosion and deposition of sediments are the main two categories of effects happening on site, and either of them produce the opposite one downstream. The delta architecture greatly depends upon the sediments transported by the river to the coast. The anthropic impact on rivers and riparian zones, mainly for energy and irrigation, has led to a dramatic decrease in the supply of coarse grained sediments. The river system which acts as a vein carrying the sediments from the mountains to the coast is a network which forms the delta itself. Any modifications made along the course of the river can greatly provoke acceleration or deceleration of the delta progradation. For example, damming along the course of the river causes sediment retention on site, consequentially depriving the growth of deltas; whereas deforestation along the course of the river causes a release of sediments leading to progressive growth of the delta. By a close study of different factors involved in the process of shaping a delta landform, Figure 07 establishes an index of reciprocal effects of each one related to delta growth or shrinkage. However the same actions on a delta have different results; for example, damming along the coast, leads to sediment retention, prevents coastal erosion and influences the growth of the delta, while deforestation along the delta coast allows sediments to be carried away by the maritime currents, provoking the shrinkage of deltas. Hence, deltas can be called Consequential Landscapes because the effect of the slightest modification along the course of the river or coast can vary the character of other regions. This reciprocity establishes a network (territory) between distant landscapes, connected or governed by the rivers running through the continents, in which the one is the direct consequence of the another.

CHANGING DELTAS

DELTA FORMATIONS. typologies and composition

01. RIVER DOMINATED DELTA Multiple ternimal distributary channels Steep gradient of Isoliths Low distance between terminal distributary channels Individual mouth bars emerge together

Figure 08.a Mississippi Delta, USA (river dominated)

02. WAVE DOMINATED DELTA Extremely Low number of terminal distributary channels Disconnected individual mouth bars River sediments are dispersed into basin by lonshore current Gentle gradient of Isoliths

Figure 08.b Nile Delta, Egypt (wave dominated) Figure 08.c Ganges Delta, India/Bangladesh (tidal dominated)

03. TIDAL DOMINATED DELTA Moderate number of ternimal distributary channels Long distance between channels River sediments dispersed into basin by tidal currents Disconnected individual mouth bars

Terminal Distributary Channel

Pro Delta

Mouth Bar

Distal Mouth Bar

Proximal Delta Front

Distal Delta Front

100% Vertcal Exageration

Figure 08 (top and next page). Diagrams of the different delta landforms typologies according to GallowayÂ´s classification. 22

Figure 09 (top). Cross section through lobate river-dominated delta compiled from modern examples (Wax Lake Delta, Atchafalaya) for horizontal scale, and from ancient examples (Panther Tongue, Perrin Delta) for internal architecture

CHANGING DELTAS

Figure 08.d Papua Delta, Papua New Guinea (tidal dominated towards river dominated)

Every delta is a unique result of the precise balance of these controlling processes over time . Galloway in 1975 classified the deltaic systems into three different kinds based on the understanding of the various prominent forces involved in the evolutionary process of delta formation. River dominated Deltaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, Wave Dominated Deltas and Tidal Dominated Deltas. Though the more recent classification of deltaic environments is based on more specific factors like water depth, sediment stratigraphy, facies architecture and grain size, the classification as proposed by Galloway is widely used even today. The internal architecture of this deltaic system is structured mainly with the sediments carried by the river. The network of distributary channels formed at different gradients deposit the sediments in the pro delta realm.

Figure 08.e Orinoco Delta, Venezuela (river dominated towards wave dominated)

â&#x20AC;&#x153;The transport is mostly as particles suspended in the flowing river water (72%), or sediment dissolved in the water (20%) with only a small amount transported as bed load (8%).â&#x20AC;?3

Figure 08.f Mekong Delta, Vietnam (wave dominated towards tidal dominated)

Delta Front (silty clays)

Mudlump

Natural Levee (silty sand, silty clay)

Clean sand zones

Transition zones (sand and silts)

Marshland (organic rich silty clays)

Pro Delta (clays)

20% Vertcal Exageration

Figure 10 (top). Axonometric representation of Bar-finger deposits in a river dominated delta.

CHANGING DELTAS

DELTAS AT RISK. subsidence

PLAN OF TYPICAL SUBSIDENCE BOWL Contour 0m Contour - 2m Contour - 4m Contour - 6m Section A

Contour - 8m

SECTION OF TYPICAL SUBSIDENCE BOWL

Section A

Ground Level Possible fissuring Point of inflection Maximum Subsidence

HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT Tension

HORIZONTAL STRAINS Compression

Tension Zone

Compression Zone

Tension Zone

SECTIONS OF A SUBSIDING TOPOGRAPHY Ground Level (initial conditions) Water Level (fresh or salt underground reservoirs)

Ground Level after initial formation of subsidence bowl

Rising water level drowns plant roots and interferes with subsurface drainage reducing agricultural productivity

Water Level (fresh or salt underground reservoirs)

Ground Level after progressive stages of subsidence

Water level rises above surface causing disruption of landuse and coastal interaction increases levels of salinity in the water

Water Level (fresh or salt underground reservoirs)

Figure 11 (top). Study of typical subsidence effects on an existing topography

CHANGING DELTAS

OUT OF 33 DELTAS IN THE WORLD, 24 ARE SUBJECTED TO SUBSIDENCE

Sinking of land is a common situation in Deltas. It may be caused by different reasons, and the immediate effect of this process is the increase of flood risks and the formation of water features inland. A subsidence bowl is formed either because of natural events or induced by human interventions. Subsidence modifies the morphology of the landform, thereby affecting many human activities taking place in the territory. The progressive transformation of the topography leads to the exposure of existing vegetation, fauna, and infrastructures to rising water levels. This greatly effects the agricultural productivity and interferes with the superficial drainage of water. Often governments spend billions in rectifying this situation, which involves the mechanical pumping out of the water and hence protecting the landform from “sinking” below water levels. However this is a remedial approach and does not prevent flooding events from happening in the future. SUBSIDENCE DUE TO COMPACTION As new sediment (weight) is added to a sedimentary deposit, the underlying ground diminishes its water content due to the reduction of empty space between sediment particles. This process is termed as Compaction, which is a common condition seen in depositional landforms, such as deltas. “Compaction rates vary over three orders of magnitude, but 80% of values range between 0.7 and 2.2 mm/years. These compaction rates slow with the depth of burial. The fastest compacting sediment layers are composed primarily of peat and bar sand, whereas the slowest compacting layers are composed of prodelta mud and natural levee deposits. Thus, compaction is also variable across a deltaic plain and influences a delta’s evolution by affecting the capacity of new sediment particles to accomodate against each other. Heterogeneity in sediment layers increases the rate of compaction.”4 SUBSIDENCE DUE TO MINERAL EXTRACTION Due to the rich mineral characteristics found in the underground vertical layers that compose the delta architecture, they are often exploited for mineral extraction. The extraction process involves draining the sediment bed from the mineral and its transportation for industrial use. However economically profitable these practices may be, extraction of underground material accelerates subsidence in deltas. In the Po river delta the subsidence rates have gone up to 10 cm/yr due to the intense methane extraction practiced during the 1950´s. Other European deltas have also seen their internal architectures modified because of this reason. “Excess groundwater pumping in the Bangkok area has accelerated subsidence, to more than 100 mm/year and the delta’s surface has subsided by more than 2m, not only in the Bangkok metropolitan area, but also in the coastal region south of Bangkok.”5

Figure 12 (top). Map of the sinking of the ground level of the Po delta region registered during the period extending from 1900 to 1957, year when mineral extraction was forbidden.

Figure 13 (top). Po di Goro river mouth lighthouse (picture taken during field trip to site)

A PANEUROPEAN ATLAS OF DELTAS

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

Figure 14 (top). Map of slopes of Europe and northern Africa highlighting the potential advance of water into dry lands. In white, the oceans and river flood plains merge into a territory without static borders, susceptible to expand or contract based on the dynamic interactions between water bodies

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

THE CONTINENTAL SCALE

A Visual analysis of the different deltas in Europe helps understand the diversity within this over exploited continental landscape. Europe has 19 prominent deltas, each with distinct characteristics and dynamics of coastal and river system. An in depth understanding of the evolutionary process of each delta and the study of the social activities within these, has been realised as a step towards developing a paneuropean atlas. The atlas reflects the river systems, with their catchment areas in Europe and the consequent delta formation thanks to the sediment transport along their branches. The confluence of the river systems with the coastal system determines the characteristics of the delta. The location of the urban settlements and hydro power dams is used cartographically to represent two permutations between a pair of consequential effects: erosion on site/accretion downstream with the former and accretion on site/ erosion downstream with the latter. The power of mapping relies on the capacity of gathering scientifically unquestionable data and reinterpreting it through visual media (cartographic tools) to support an argument. For example, in Figures 14 and 15 the representation of slopes and contours help to construct a narrative around Europeans deltas and the dynamism of coastal environments. Later, the final message of the map (Figure 31) comes across when these drawings are combined with other symbols representing the relation between human interventions and reciprocal geomorphologic effects. European Deltas are considered natural rich habitats for several aquatic and aerial species, fertile land for the human occupation, and minerally rich for industrial exploitation Deltas may only comprise 5% of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s land area, but over 500 million people live on them, including many heavily populated mega deltas in Asia. The Ganges-Brahmaputra, Yangtze and Nile deltas alone are densely populated, with 230 million people, according with data from the year 2000. It is expected that there will be a 35% increase of population in the major world deltas by 2015. The potential of these landscapes to transform accordingly to the necessities makes them very attractive for speculating on how to modify their spatial organization. The Florence Convention on Landscape, signed on the year 2000, set some guidelines for the preservation of Europeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s esteemed natural reserves and landscapes but not with a design strategy. Following this, many agencies (NATURE 2000, DELTANET, LIFE III, INTERCAFE, NATREG, and THE WETLANDS PROJECT) were commissioned by the European Union to protect the delta landscapes. Nevertheless, their approach comes from a perspective of forced preservation of the ecological value of the landscape. We believe this to be a fruitless enterprise since it does not take into account the many factors from outside of the deltas that inform their transformation. Changes in the landscapes, through natural processes, are extremely slow and possibly unperceptible during a lifetime. Deltas, on the other hand, are environments where transformations can happen fairly fast. European deltas have been intensely populated and transformed throughout centuries, therefore, they are the ideal place to start imagining future scenarios for their occupation.

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

Figure 15 (top). Map of the bathymetry contours around Europe and northern Africa highlighting the potential advance of dry land into water bodies. This drawing, together with Figure XX, convey the idea that geomorphologic processes in coastal regions happen in two opposite directions, which result in the configuration of contrasting landscapes

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

Figure 16 (top). Map of the bathymetry slopes around Europe and northern Africa. The dark blue areas immediate to the continents represent the flatest regions in which there is more potential for the formation of new land

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

Downstream river. Delta region Figure 19. Danube. (top) River origin. Donaueschingen, Germany (bottom) Delta, river dominated. Romania / Ukraine

Figure 20. Ebro. (top) River origin. Fontibre, Spain (bottom) Delta, river dominated. Spain

Figure 21. Elbe. (top) River origin. Koniggratz, Czech Republich (bottom) Delta, tidal dominated. Germany

Figure 22. Minho. (top) River origin. Pedrigal de Irimia, Spain (bottom) Delta, tidal dominated. Portugal / Spain

Figure 23. Po. (top) River origin. Monviso, Italy (bottom) Delta, river dominated. Italy

Figure 17 (top of the page). Map of the European rivers ending in deltas. Each delta can be assigned into a specific typology (river dominated, wave dominated or tidal dominated), but none is a pure example of any of these, since European deltas are transitioning from one category to another because of human activities

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

River catchment area. The origin of the tributaries represent the starting point of a reciprocal network between distant territories along the main river course. Figure 24. Rhine. (top) River origin.Tomasee, Switzerland (bottom) Delta, wave dominated. Netherlands

Figure 25. Rhone. (top) River origin. Valais, Switzerland (bottom) Delta, wave dominated. France

Figure 26. Tagus. (top) River origin. Koniggratz, Czech Republich (bottom) Delta, tidal dominated. Portugal

Figure 27. Vistula. (top) River origin. Barania Gora, Poland (bottom) Delta, river dominated. Poland

Figure 18 (top of the page). Map of the basin areas of the selected rivers and their deltas. The representation of the catchment areas highlight the individual regions defined by each tributary. Thus, an argument can be posed about the constitution of terrains, or land under the governance (influence) of every river.

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

CITIES. Population 1-5 million. Consequential landscape effect: erosion on site, accretion downstream. CITIES. Population 100 thousand-5 million. Consequential landscape effect: erosion on site, accretion downstream. DAMS. Consequential landscape effect: accretion on site, erosion downstream. Figure 28 (top). Diagram explaining the relation between human activities and their consequence on the three typologies of deltas, and specifically those within the European context

Figure 29 (top of the page). Map of the European major urban settlements and dams built within the basin areas of the selected rivers. Each of this human constructions have been assigned a specific consequence on site and downstream. Cities provoke erosion on site but accretion of sediments in the delta regions. Dams, on the contrary, are associated to accumulation of sediments on site and the consequential erosion of land downstream

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

Figure 30 (top). Map of the selected European deltas with their rivers and catchment areas shown in the contexts described in Figure 14 and 15 Figure 31(next page). Atlas of European Deltas, in which these are represented as a result of a reciprocity between changes happening along the river courses

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

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Figure 32 (top). Correlation of the linear progradation rates of four European delta systems. Summary of the main intervals of delta growth of the Ebro, Rhone, Po and Danube systems,r eporting their maximum rates as orders of magnitude

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

THE REGIONAL SCALE. four european deltas

“The onset of the northern Mediterranean and Black Sea deltas follows an ancestral phase dominated by estuary fill and relatively slow delta growth that can be traced back to the Mid-Holocene Period, around 6 kyr BP”,7 when deceleration in the rate of sea level rise allowed sediment accumulation at the river mouths. The following few thousand years of delta growth reflect a complex picture of high frequency climatic changes accompanied by the spreading of human populations, impacting the land cover, the hydrological cycle and ultimately the sediment production and transport through river basin areas. Historic analysis of the channel bifurcation and the rate of sediment flux extends our understanding of the current delta conditions. “All the southern European deltas show a generalized retreat during the millennium following the decline of the Roman Empire; this interval encompassed repeated climate oscillations, including the colder Dark Ages and the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA) that was accompanied by a gradual socioeconomic consolidation with a consistent demographic growth.”8 “Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, human control on the natural environment became overwhelming: at present one-third to one half of land surface has been impacted and transformed by human activities, with dramatic perturbations of global ecosystems.”9 The anthropic impact on rivers and riparian zones, mainly for energy and irrigation, was achieved by fragmenting the river courses through dams and channel diversions, that led to a dramatic decrease in the supply of coarse-grained material to the sea. Due to sediment retention on anthropic reservoirs, the reduced riverine clastic input no longer balances the sinking of delta plains caused by subsidence and sea level rise. Delta systems become, therefore, more vulnerable to the action of marine processes, leading to a generalized phase of delta erosion and retreat. “During the last five decades, several Km2 of delta plains have been submerged and all northern Mediterranean and Black Sea deltas underwent extensive erosion.”10 The same fate has been documented for deltaic systems worldwide where similar human impact has occurred. The drastic change in the sediment supply after the construction of hydroelectric dams in the Danube, Ebro and Rhone rivers, for example, have made the deltas prone to coastal erosion. The Po delta, however, has been affected in a lesser amount by damming, but instead, other interventions such as dredging for canal construction and river branching have been the main agent in the evolutionary process of this delta.

Figure 33 (bottom previous page). Water and sediment flux in four European delta systems. Coupled diagram of suspended sediment load (brown) and fresh water (light blue) demonstrating the impact of anthropic reservoirs on river discharge in four deltas; gray stripes highlight the timing of construction of major dams. Peaks of water discharge are in phase with peaks in suspended sediment load only before dam construction until the 1960’sv.

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

THE REGIONAL SCALE. danube basin

Figure 34.a Iron Gate II Use: Hydro Electric power Constructed: 1984 Dam length: 412 m Dam Height: 35 m Suspended sediment: 25000 T / yr

Figure 34.b Iron Gate I Use: Hydro Electric power Constructed: 1972 Dam length: 1278m Dam Height: 60 m Suspended sediment: 45000 T / yr

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Valley Lake formation Electricity supply to Serbia and Romania Southern Delta lobe prone to erosion.

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Valley Lake formation Economic development of villages supply of water to agricultural land Delta growth rate decreased

2 00 m contours Danube Tributaries Danube River Coastline Irrigation Canals Dams with the drastic erosive effects on delta Hydro electric Power stations

River length : 2860 Km Catchment Basin : 817000 Km2 (8% of Europe) Origin : Black Forest Mountains, Germany Mouth : Black Sea Deltaic Area: 5800 Km2 Sediment Discharge: 25.85 MT/yr Originating from the Black forest mountains, the Danube river flows across 6 countries before culminating in the Black Sea. Due to the vast catchment basin of the river, it is vastly exploited for hydroelectricity. The massive construction of the iron gate dams along the danube, though provided an opportunity to irrigate and supply electricity to many rural and peri urban settlements, it has vastly diminished the sediments deposited along the coast from 51.28 MT/yr to 25.58 MT/yr, thereby threatning the population residing in the delta.

Figure 34 (top). Map of the Danube Basin area, highlighting the most important dams which are having a significant impact on the respective delta and its capacity to form new land or preserve the existing one above water levels

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

THE REGIONAL SCALE. ebro basin

Figure 35.a Mequinenza Dam Use: Hydro electricity Constructed: 1966 Dam length: 451 m Dam Height: 81m Suspended sediment : 1000 T / yr

Figure 35.b Flix Dam Use: Hydro electricity Constructed: 1969 Dam length: 400 m Dam Height: 26 m Suspended sediment: 0 T / yr

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Formation of large lake Water level drop by 15 m Heavy fishing and recreational activities Delta growing at a minimal rate

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Recreational activities Irrigational Canals Delta in severe state of erosion

River length : 928 Km Catchment basin: 85,550 Km2 (17% of Spain) Origin : Cantabrian Mountain Range Mouth : Mediterranean Sea Deltaic area : 320 Km2 Sediment discharge : 0.12 T / yr In the 20th century, the Ebro river was exploited heavily for hydroelectric power and for a series of irrigational canal system. This has rendered in the massive reduction of the Ebro Delta region , leaving it in an erosion prone state. Though the construction of the dam was done with interests of the social and economic development of adjacent villages like Mequinenza and Ribarroja, this has resulted in the consequential erosion of the Ebro river delta.

Figure 35 (top). Map of the Ebro Basin area, highlighting the most important dams which are having a significant impact on the respective delta and its capacity to form new land or preserve the existing one above water levels

Figure 35.c RIBARROJA DAM Use: Hydro electricity Constructed: 1969 Dam length: 565 m Dam Height: 90 m Suspended sediment: 2 T / yr CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Heavy fishing Recreational activities Delta at substantial risk

2 00 m contours Ebro Tributaries Ebro River Coastline Irrigation Canals Dams with the drastic erosive effects on delta Hydro electric Power stations

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

THE REGIONAL SCALE. po basin

Figure 36.a ISOLA SERAFINI Use: Hydro electricity Constructed: 1960 Dam length: 100 m Dam Height: 75 m Suspended sediment: 1000 T / yr

Figure 36.b PORTO VIRO CUTOFF Constructed: 1604 Venetian engineering project of redirection of the main river channel to prevent the silting up of the Venice lagoon.

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Formation of large lake Recreational facilities Delta in a state of substantial risk

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Erosion of the existing delta Formation of the present day delta

2 00 m contours Po Tributaries Po River Coastline Irrigation Canals Dams with the drastic erosive effects on delta Hydro electric Power stations

Figure 36 (top). Map of the Po Basin area, highlighting the most important dams which are having a significant impact on the respective delta and its capacity to form new land or preserve the existing one above water levels

PANEUROPEAN ATLAS

THE REGIONAL SCALE. rhone basin

Figure 37.a Bregnier Cordon Use: Hydro electricity Constructed: 1986 Dam length: 12000 m Dam Height: 13.7 m Suspended sediment: 1000 T / yr

Figure 37.b DonzĂ¨re-Mondragon Dam Use: Hydro Electric power Constructed: 1952 Dam length: 195m Dam Height: 25 m Suspended sediment: 2100 T / yr

Figure 37.c Serre Poncon Use: Irrigation Constructed: 1960 Dam length: 600 m Dam Height: 129 m Suspended sediment: 1500 T / yr

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Recreational activities Environmental & ecological reuse Erosion Prone Delta state

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Valley Lake formation Economic development of villages 9000 hectars of agricultural land Delta growth rate decreased

CONSEQUENTIAL EFFECTS Flooding of villages Valley Lake formation 1500 Km2 of irrigational facilities Substantial risk to Delta

River length: 813km Catchment basin: 98,000 Km2 Origin: Rhone Glacier, Switzerland Mouth: Mediterranean Sea Delta Area: 930 Km Sediment Discharge : 25m/yr 2

Shared by 3 countries, France, Switzerland, and Italy , Rhone is the largest fresh wateroutlet into the Mediterranean Sea. 75 % of this river is located in France and is heavy exploited through a series of irrigational canals. Apart from the construction of the dam being a boon to the adjacent villages, the delta has been subjected to erosion due to lack of sediment supply causing heavy risk to its inhabitants.

Figure 37 (top). Map of the Rhone Basin area, highlighting the most important dams which are having a significant impact on the respective delta and its capacity to form new land or preserve the existing one above water levels

2 00 m contours Rhone Tributaries Rhone River Coastline Irrigation Canals Dams with the drastic erosive effects on delta Hydro electric Power stations

essay

Figure 01. Plothemy’s Map of the world

PERCEIVED TERRITORY: map By Shruthi Padmanabhan What is Territory? “The first man who, having fenced off a plot of land [enclos un terrain], thought of saying, this is mine, and found people simple enough to believe him, was the real founder of civil society”(Elden, Birth of Territory). The world is based on an organization with the claim of ownership of land from small parcels to territorial scales. Man has often found the need to categorize territory as his own, something that he owns or something that can be politically governed. Stuart Elden states “Territory is something that is both of these (land and terrain), and more than these. Territory must be approached in itself rather than through territoriality, and in relation to land and terrain.” (A)

Figure 02. Cahill’s Projection of earth as a unified territory.

Figure 03. Mercator’s Projection of the world with the landmasses exaggerated as extended out from the Equator.

Territorial ownership led to the need for its representation. The first map, dating back to the 2200 BC, was of the city of Babylon. It laid down the rules of cardinal system, which we still follow today. Various other maps continued to be made from Egypt and Greece, where the earth was first represented on a spherical surface. It was after Plothemy’s convoluted projection of the earth (fig1) on a flat surface, which misled many geographical explorers, that Mercator in 1569 published his second projection of the earth surface (fig2)(B) on a flat 2 dimensional plane. The development of the Mercator map was mainly for navigators with an intention to show the ocean as a single territory and land masses just as entities that bound them. The title of Mercator’s chart as originally published reads “Nova et auchta orbis terrae descriptio ad usum navigantium emendate accommodata” — in other words, a new and enlarged delineation of the world adapted for the use of navigators (Cahill, 1909). This map greatly exaggerates many landmasses to twice or thrice their size and minimizes many divergently. With colonization, maps were developed with greater precision and accuracy for the naval fleets to travel vast seas in the discovery of land or its exploitation. Accurate knowledge of geography and the physical boundaries of the earth entailed with it the power to draw political boundaries and thus establish colonial territories (Nathan White, 1999). Early British Cartography depicts land as merely an object of ownership. Through these devised cartographic notations, the purpose

of mapping itself became to represent the organization of the territory. By this time, the Mercator map became a powerful tool for ocean and sea navigators and also the Political powers inland. It is important to keep in mind that Mercator’s map divided the world in a grid like system which greatly exaggerating the landmasses as they diverged from the equator, to establish the oceans and seas to be connected through straight lines which could propose the shortest distance from the one coast to the other for the purposes of aiding navigation. Needless to say, this greatly worked with the imperialistic colonies of Europe and America. The simple over use of this map and its convenient adaptation to the current political scenario has led people to be oblivious to its true intention. This renders it to be a mere actualization of a territory through navigational eyes. “The closer a map is to Reality, the less it renders its use”. These words provoke the use of maps as tracings and demand a thought for new form of maps which counter the conventional political delineation of land parcels.

Mapping the Territory “As a creative practice, mapping precipitates its most productive effects through a finding that is also a founding; its agency lies in neither reproduction nor imposition but rather in uncovering realities previously unseen or unimagined, even across seemingly exhausted grounds. Thus, mapping unfolds potential; it remakes territory over and over again, each time with new and diverse consequences.”(Corner, 1999). The territorialisation and de-territorialisation is what gives maps its unique quality. They don’t just show you the existing but help understand the underlying social and cultural structure. As designers and planners, this aspect is of supreme importance as this enables the understanding of the territory in a multi-dimensional scale and not just as a 2 dimensional planar projection. For Many years in the 16th century, Maps were made with not much agenda but political. These soon became tracings showing the conscious. It was a conscious iteration to emphasize the monotonous hold of the political organization

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

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Figure 04. Digital reconstruction of the process of construction of Dymaxion map following Buckminster Fuller’s ideologies.

with a lack of rediscovery. Some attempts were made along the way in order to break this rhythm and develop a map which would formulate the territory as a much unified entity yet these fail to take head. Cahill’s Projection of the earth (fig3), was one of the attempts which could have led to a revolutionary change in the field of cartography however, it is one of the lost treasures. Cahill realized the flaw in the Mercator projection and formulated a map in 1909 which was an accurate projection of the world surface as seen hanging from the North Pole. He often urged the metrological society to display data on a single accurate map. Following him, Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion map published in 1943, eventually forced out the idea of repetitive reconstruction of the earth to its detailed, accurate construction which could let the user indulge in the process of the map and also unconsciously formulate conclusions.

Fuller and Territory Buckminster Fuller and his ideologies of territory were not only revolutionary but also very ahead of his time. His idea of territory extended to a global level and his understanding was that of the planet Earth as a Spaceship as flying across the universe. Fuller in his book Operation Manual for Spaceship Earth preaches that currently there is a lack of unified perception of the planet. He argues that our current attitude towards the word is broken with a divide and conquer rule, however what we need is an overall understanding of the globe in order to reach a comprehensive solution to today’s problems. The traditional maps look into just the conventional mode of representation which was once formulated by our predecessors. Instead of serving as “a precise means for seeing the world from the dynamic, cosmic and comprehensive viewpoint,” the maps we use still cause humanity to “appear inherently disassociated, remote, selfinterestedly preoccupied with the political concept of its got to be you or me; there is not enough for both.” (Fuller Institute) Fuller Identifies man’s historical pattern, through time, of moving across the territory in search of land and discovering that 3/4ths of it is water. Men hence adapted to stay inland and confine themselves as dry land specialists not knowing that they would take over the seas, oceans and skies. Man distributed

himself in various locations of land and seeing only 1 millionth of the spaceship earth in his single lifetime. The favorable land was not in one piece, but consisted of a myriad of relatively small parcels widely dispersed over the surface of the enormous Earth sphere. (Fuller, 1969) Land is therefore an important aspect of the human nature and character. It is hence that land was represented in a detailed manner for a long portion pf history. Fuller goes on further from here to explain how colonization was a consequence of man’s domination over the oceans and the seas. With the growing importance of water as a navigational network, it became very important not only to understand it but also to represent it. Maps as the Mercator’s projection were clearly devised to comprehend this ideology. The mastering of map making to correspond to the current issue at hand is an extension to the belief that what man represents is how he perceives the world. Fuller was mainly interested in the history of man and his over specialization (C) and synergetics (D)

Dymaxion Fuller formulated the word DYMAXION which is a combination of three of his favorite words, DYNAMIC MAXIMUM TENSION. He devised this word to represent the idea that rational action in a rational world demands the most efficient overall performance per unit of input. His Dymaxion structures then are those that yield the greatest possible efficiency in terms of available technology (Fuller Institute). Chasing his philosophies from Spaceship earth, fuller invented the Dymaxion Map. He single handedly changed the conception of maps through his introduction of Dymaxion Map. The map is the most accurate representation of the world’s surface with minimum distortion to the landmasses. It is a projection of the spherical earth broken to 14 segments, 8 triangles and 6 squares. The map was constructed with the projection of the spherical earth surface onto an icosahedron and unfolding it to form 2 dimensional planes (fig 4). The map itself can be printed onto a sheet and can be manually attached piece by piece by any

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

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Figure 05. Dimaxion World Map

PERCEIVED TERRITORY: map By Shruthi Padmanabhan individual. In doing so, the user becomes involved in the process of map making. The Dymaxion map (fig 5) addresses a sense of continuity in the land masses of the world. The most interesting aspect of the map is that it can be taken apart and put back together with different permutations and combinations. This gives the map its unique quality. The map maybe bent, torn, twisted in order to represent different formations of land or ocean (fig 6).

Figure 06. Dymaxion Map as seen through different permutations and combinations

A conventional map would give a conclusive depiction of the maker to the user without his/ her involvement in the map making process. This often limited the adaptability of a map to different scenarios. Many such modern maps show the world as divided into political boundaries or physical features or sometimes even both. However, Fuller represented the different temperature zones of the world in different colors in the Dymaxion map. The Fuller Projection defines our world not in terms of political boundaries or physical features but by temperature zone... Buckminster Fuller was interested in the history of human migration and the geographical areas of technological innovation as it related to temperature. Fuller found that throughout history, humans migrated east to west along the 32 degree freezing line and that the majority of the dominant centers of modern civilization can be found to lie somewhere within this optimum temperature band. He believed that the social structures and economic patterns are generated by how cold it gets not how hot (Fuller Institute).

World Game In the year 1960’s Buckminster fuller formulated the World Logistics Game or shortened World Game. He used the Dymaxion map in order to provide an opportunity for the common man to be able to come up with solutions on a global level. This concept was clearly in relationship to his ideologies of world economies as understood in Spaceship earth. The use of “world” in the title obviously refers to Fuller’s global perspective and his contention that we now need a systems approach that deals with the world as a whole, and not a piece meal approach that tackles our problems in what he called a “local focus hocus pocus” manner. The entire world is now the relevant unit of analysis, not the city, state or

nation. (Fuller Institute) By always revisiting his theories and constantly evolving them, their representation was reinvented. Through time, different mediums were represented in the Dymaxion man hence making it not just an unusable wall hanging or a historical treasure. This constant state of recreating the unconscious through the user’s participation is what makes the Dymaxion map a true map.

Conclusion The map does not reproduce an unconscious closed in upon it; it constructs the unconscious (Deleuze and Guattari, 1998). The map breaks the rules of conventional mapping, not only is it a version of counter mapping but has an interactive quality with the user. It is this quality that does not impose a conclusion on the user but helps the user get to it himself. The map clearly meant for the purpose of representation of earth on a 2 dimensional flat surface, does more. It keeps reality in mind but with the option of a discovery of a new reality with different iterations. It deviates from a tracing and represents not only the geographical or political features but also the social and cultural aspects in the world as a society. The map is open and connectable in all its dimensions; it is detachable, reversible, and susceptible to constant modification. It can be torn, reversed, adapted to any kind of mounting, and reworked by an individual, group or social formation (Deleuze and Guattari, 1998). Deleuze and Guattari in A Thousand Plateaus redefine a map, not as a tracing but an object which can be constantly modified. A tracing should always put behind a map, they conclude to give the user the existing and a vision towards its evolution. Cartographic evolution shows evidence of a gradual death, from the actualization of the territory and its political organization. Maps used throughout history have a quality of imposing a thought on the reader and hence giving it a single dimensional value. By the development of maps like Dymaxion Map, map making can be related to the construction and reconstruction of the territory involving the user (fig 7 & fig8). This lets

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

essay

Figure 07. Buckminster Fuller’s one world Dymaxion map extended to understand the fresh water availability in the territory.

the user discover new understandings every time and therefore understand the underlying social, cultural or political meaning. This characteristic play of between multi-dimensional planes is evidently lacking in cartography at present.

Figure 07. The Buckminster Fuller Institute Figure 08. The Buckminster Fuller Institute

Select Bibliography BERNARD J. S. CAHILL: An account of a new land map of the world. The Scottish geographical magazine http://www.genekeyes.com/B.J.S._CAHILL_RESOURCE.html

Notes A. Elden defines 1. Land as a limited quantity that can be owned. It can be distributed and allocated with a political or economic agenda which exerts competition. 2. Terrain has a direct relationship to power of land. It delineates land in the context of military operations and as system of control.

BUCKMINSTER FULLER: Operation manual for Spaceship earth (1969) BUCKMINSTER FULLER: Earth Inc. BUCKMINSTER FULLER: Dymaxion World. Life Magazine (1 mar 1943)

B. Mercator’s First world map was published in 1538. This map depicted the world as two heart-shaped “pictures” of a globe (one from the northern pole, the other from the southern pole). This was the first time the planet was represented as a whole entity with landmasses and seas. Due to the discontinuity in the map, it was not ideal for the use of Navigators and hence was abandoned. His second Map, called Mercator’s Projection was published in 1569.

THE BUCKMINSTER FULLER INSTITUTE: a.http://www.bfi.org/about-fuller/big-ideas/dymaxion-world/ dymaxion-map

C. Over- specialization: Buckminster Fuller believed that man was not made with an intention of specialization unlike the fishes and birds. This gave man an upper hand to comprehend all the logistics of the universe. He also concludes that over specialization leads to extinction.

GILLES DELEUZE AND FELIX GUATTARI: A thousand Plateaus, 1998

b. http://www.bfi.org/about-fuller/big-ideas/dymaxion-world c. http://bfi.org/about-bfi/what-we-do/exhibitions/dymax-redux

JAMES CORNER: The Agency of Mapping Mappings Edited by Denis Cosgrove 1999

Figure 08. Buckminster Fuller’s Air Ocean world Dymaxion map to represent the clouds as formed over the territory.

NATHAN WHITE, Geography and Mapping 1999. E. Synergetics endeavors to identify and understand the methods that Nature actually uses in coordinating Universe (both physically and metaphysically). Synergetics provides a method and a philosophy for problem-solving and design and therefore has applications in all areas of human endeavor.”

STUART ELDEN: Land, terrain, territory Progress in Human Geography (21 April 2010) STUART ELDEN: Birth of Territory

Image credits Figure 01. Wikipedia.org Figure 02. Genekeys.com Figure 03. Genekeys.com Figure 04. Wikipedia.org Figure 05. The Buckminster Fuller Institute Figure 06. Genekeys.com

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

Figure 38 (top). Nineteenth century eel farm in Valle di Comacchio (picture taken during field trip to site)

A HISTORIC RECONSTRUCTION OF THE PO DELTA

Historic Reconstruction

Figure 39 (top). Aerial view map of Venice by Jacopo de Barbari published in 1500. This drawing is a cartographic representation that conveys the connection between the identity of a powerful city and the landscape it occupies 50

Figure 40 (bottom). Map of the Po valley after the Porto Viro cut off was executed. The drawing is specially relevant because it highlights the simultaneous presence of eroding (previous) delta and the growing (present) one

Historic Reconstruction

A POLITICAL DELTA. the role of the venetian republic in the fabrication of the modern po delta “The Po Delta is one of the best-documented deltas of the western world”11. The final region of the Po River has been inhabited since the Etruscans founded the ancient port of Adria around the year 1000 B.C. The Etruscans tried to control the river and to protect their port from silting up. Ultimately, they gave up the fight to control the enormous amount of sediments flowing down from the Po and its tributaries in the Alps and the Apennines. From this date on, the river advanced rapidly towards the Adriatic Sea while the main distributary channel shifted to the south through Ferrara (Po di Ferrara). Two major distributaries (Po di Primero and Po di Volcano) entered the sea beginning the formation of a new delta, south of the modern delta. In 1150 A.D. a major natural diversion of the river took place at Ficarolo. Attempts to protect the harbor of Ferrara were insufficient, and the new channel (Tramontana) flowed northeast and formed an active delta, at the expense of the southern ones that began to erode, which advanced at a rate of 25 meters per year. “After 1600 the Po Delta became a more predominantly human-controlled environment. The new Tramontane channel started to endanger the Venetian Republic by silting up the lagoon of Venice.” 12 In 1604 Venetians dug an artificial canal at Porto Viro and diverted the main channel southward. The canal forced the river to advance in a southeastern direction at a rate of 86 meters annually. In 1840 the eastern distributary Po Della Pila became active, and eventually developed into the river’s main and final branch. The average advance rate was on average 50 meters per year. The benefits of the cut off were not limited to the preservation of the Venice lagoon as a water landscape. Venetiand understood that the river carried enough material to form land, and they intended to control where to make it. We consider this to be a “sediment management” approach to intervening the landscape. Controling the means to create new land gave the State of Venice more power in the region because it allowed them to expand its own borders. The Po delta advanced during the last 400 years much more quickly than before, most likely due to an increase in sediment supply as a result of deforestation and intense urbanization within the river’s basin area. Yet, confining the Po’s discharge to a small area forced the river to branch, and primarily caused the rapid advancement onwards of the Po Delta after the cut-off. Therefore, the new (modern) delta became a lobate morphology -a lobe shaped landform resulting from multiple rivers discharging sediments into the sea- rather than a cuspate morphology –a triangular shape in which sediments of one river mouth are modeled by the waves through the process of longshore drift- like the ancient delta. The understanding of the evolutionary process of the ancient delta system helps us reinforce further the idea of consequential landscape, where in the man-made interventions like the formation of cities, the Porto - Viro cut off, the mechanical drilling for methane extraction, all have reshaped the Po River Delta as we know it today.

FROM ORIGIN TO CONFLUENCE. THE PO VALLEY The Po river delta has been a direct consequence of man-made interventions not only along the course of the river but also manipulation of sediment delivery within the delta. Po rises from a plateau known as the Pian Del Re at the height of 1952m above sea level of the Medditerrean Sea and on the flanks of 3830 m high Mount Viso. Three names: Padus, Bodincus, Eridanu are pinpointed from its source. In 34 Km the Po drops 1600 m in height. To protect the nature surrounding the initial stretch of the Po, in 1990, the region of Piemonte set up a huge 35,000 Hectare park. The park runs 252 Km along the river and includes the river bed, banks, surrounding wood with 17 natural reserves. Special care and attention is taken into the tributaries that feed into the river. Po relies on 141 tributaries in terms of nutritious substances, minerals, and sediment and living organisms. 15,764,000 people live in 71,000 Km2 of basin area. Its waters properly managed are an incomparable agricultural and industrial resource. “Po basin contains 285 power stations, 272 hydroelectric and produces 17,940 MW of power.”13 The river provides water for irrigation and power stations and sand and gravel for road and houses. French geographer Eliseo Reclus observed in the 19th century that the Po, out of all European rivers, carried the largest mass of water to its mouth in proportion to the size of its basin.

Historic Reconstruction

Figure 41 (top). Map of the Po Basin area, highlighting the most important urban settlements in the region and the principal activities happening around them, which bear an impact on the evolution of the delta

Historic Reconstruction

HISTORIC DELTAS. a chronology of the ancient po deltas

Figure 42 (top). Chronology of the major events that have influenced the many shifts of the Po river and the coastline which, in turn, have transformed the Po delta. The timeline is structured around four categories, from top to bottom: distributary variation, lagoon formation, sand spit formation and political governance through the foundation of urban settlements

Figure 43 (top). Valli di Pesca (fishing lagoons) at Po di Maistra river mouth (picture taken during field trip to site)

GEOMORPHOLOGY OF THE PO DELTA

geomorphology

Figure 44 (top). Topography of the Po Delta represented through a sequence of vertical sections. The result of this analysis reveals the main geomorphology characteristic of deltas: rivers run higher than the surrounding landv

geomorphology

DELTA ARCHITECTURE. distributary channels Apex Angle= 135º

Length = 43Km

1.8

3.7 3.0

6.0 3.0

Number of Distributaries: 5 Number of Terminal Distributaries: 18

Tributaries

Collection System Drainage basin - 74000 Km2 area dominated by erosion

Trunk river

Transportation System area dominated by erosion or deposition

Distributaries

Dispersing System Po Delta : Subaerial surface = 60,000 hectares area dominated by deposition

Goro Branch 9-10% sediment flow

Maistra Branch 2-3% sediment flow

Gnocca Branch 13% sediment flow

Coastal currents

Shaping System Adriatic Sea 90 Km wave dominated coastal zone

Tolle Branch 6-8% sediment flow

Pila Branch 63% sediment flow

The Po river bifurcates into 5 distributary channels once it enters the delta region, namely: Goro, Gnocca, Maistra, Pila and Tolle. Each distributary channel plays an important role in the progradation of the delta through sediment deposition.Various studies have shown that each channel has a specific volume of water and sediments carried into the Adriatic. The unique cuspate shape of this river dominated delta is determined by the main channel Po di Pila which carries the maximum amount of sediments to the coast. The number and direction of the distributary channels has changed greatly during the past four centuries, since the Porto Viro cut off was executed. For example, Po di Levante (main branch at the “The Po River would discharge 11% more sediments time of the Venetian intervention) has become mainly a navigation canal mechanically controlled, if in direct contact with the coastal system” while the other two branches of the pre-cut off delta, Po di Tramontana and Po di Scirocco, have been absorbed by the northern coastal lagoon and marshland formations. Even today, under a much more regulated management of the territory, these dynamics are still in play; “as Po di Pila branches further, Po di Maistra is reducing its capacity to transport both water and sediments because of its progressive detachement from the main river course.”14 “At present, the number of terminal distributary channels (those which discharge directly in the sea) is understood to be 18, with Po di Goro having 2, Po di Gnocca 2, Po di Tolle 4 , Po di Pila 3 and Po di Maistra 1.”15 Figure 45 (top). Diagram of the Po river course divided into three categories based on sediment transportation. Figure 46 (right). Diagrams detailing distances between the Po river distributary channels and their contribution to the total distribution of sediment transport

geomorphology

DELTA ARCHITECTURE. sediment formations

C. Formation of coastal barriers through longshore drift

Wave action Sediment deposition

Sea level continuous flow decreased salinity

Wave action

Sediment deposition bar formation A

Wave action Sediment deposition

sediment transfer during tides

Three typologies of sediment formations in delta systems: A. Natural levees B. Mouth bars or sand spits C. Coastal barriers or sand bars

bar emergence

growth of marshland vegetation

Wave action

Sediment deposition formation of coastal lagoon (valle)

coastal bar

Wave action Sediment deposition

A. Formation of natural levees through successive floods

coastal lagoon (valle)

coastal bar

Wave action River

Sediment deposition coastal lagoon (valle)

coastal bar

Wave action Sediment deposition Flooding Event

fertile land for agriculture

coastal bar

Wave action Sediment deposition Sediment accumulation on river banks

consolidated land for various uses

coastal bar

B. Formation of mouth bars at terminal distributary channels TDC=terminal distributary channel

TDC

BU=underwater bar_BA=above water bar LU=underwater levee_LA=above water levee

TDC

flow of sediment through tdc LU

emergence of bar LA TDC LA

BU BA

growth of bar and formation of lu LA TDC

formation of bar and channel split

TDC LU

emergence of multiple bars

formation of new bar and channel split LA TDC

The growth of land in deltas is related to the capacity of the river to move sediments forward and laterally through successive floods. In the case of river dominated deltas (such as the Po), the water level from the river flows higher than the surrounding ground level, embanked by natural levees formed through continous flooding events. This is a fundamental characteristic of delta landscapes because the difference in levels is what allows the formation of new land. After successive flooding events, levees might break, originating new river branches which will start again the process of land growth in different directions. Understanding these natural logics of the delta landscape is essential to propose interventions to reconfigure the organization of the territory using these as guiding principles.

blocking of channel and further terminal branching

Figure 47 (left and top). Diagrams detailing the characteristics and sequence of formation of three typologies of sediment landforms present in delta landscapes

geomorphology

DELTA ARCHITECTURE. soil composition

PO DELTA SOIL COMPOSITION

Sand Loam Loamy sand Silty loam Silt clay loam Sand, sandy loam Sand, loamy sand Sandy loam, loam Loam, silty loam Silty clay Silty loam clay, silty clay Loam, silty loam, silty clay loam

An important factor involved in the delta evolution is the properties of the sediment carried by the river. The material of transported sediment informs about present activity being carried out in these locations, but can also become an element of consideration towards a design proposal. The soil property of clay or silty clay can retain less amount of water, whereas loam and loamy clay retain greater amounts, thereby making areas with this soil ideal for natural water retention or catchment spots.

Figure 48 (top). Index of the Po Delta soil classification. The presence of sand in recently formed land confirms the nature of the sediments carried by the river and the result of the former as an interaction of the latter with the sea Figure 49 (next page). Cartographic representation of the geomorphlogy forces at play in the formation of the Po Delta

geomorphology

DELTA CATALOGUE. intuitive exploration of delta land formation

Figure 50 (left and top). Graphic exploration of the progressive growth of a delta as in natural phases of land formation.

geomorphology

DELTA CATALOGUE. rules for river and sediment branching RULES OF BRANCHING. obstruction angle and sediment direction flow

First Degree Branching

RULES OF LAND FORMATION

First Degree Branching

RULES OF BRANCHING. obstruction angle and sediment direction flow

RULES OF LAND FORMATION

Second Degree Branching

Figure 51 (top). Catalogue of diagrams detailing the variations in landforms resulting from the introduction of external obstacles in front of hypothetical river mouths. This set of rules has been informed by the geomorphologic principles in deltas related to angles and distances between terminal distributary channels, and levee and mouth bar formations

geomorphology

DELTA CATALOGUE. typologies of delta landforms

Figure 52 (top and next page). Catalogue of the typologic variations of delta landforms resulting from the combination of the set of rules for river and sediment branching with the intuitive the representation of these formations

geomorphology

DELTA CATALOGUE. typologies of delta landforms

Figure 53 (top and next page). Catalogue of the typologic variations of delta landforms resulting from the combination of the set of rules for river and sediment branching with the intuitive the representation of these formations

geomorphology

DELTA CATALOGUE. typologies of delta landforms

Figure 54 (top and next page). Catalogue of the typologic variations of delta landforms resulting from the combination of the set of rules for river and sediment branching with the intuitive the representation of these formations

geomorphology

DELTA CATALOGUE. typologies of delta landforms

Figure 55 (top and next page). Catalogue of the typologic variations of delta landforms resulting from the combination of the set of rules for river and sediment branching with the intuitive the representation of these formations

geomorphology

Figure 56 (top). Pescatori (fishermen) infrastructure in Sacca degli Scardovari (picture taken during field trip to site)

SOCIAL INTERSECTIONS IN THE PO DELTA

social INTERSECTIONS

Figure 57 (top). Projection of the main social infrastructures present in the Po delta on to the subsidence induced topography for the next thirty years

social INTERSECTIONS

DELTA ACTORS. local agents at play in the po delta

“...the plain has been created by the floods of the river Po and the rivers of the Apennines that have deposited sand and silt. Over the centuries, the plain has been covered with vegetation. Man has deforested to build and cultivate. The centuries-old challenge against natural elements begun: man separated land from water. Reclamation projects were carried out: reclamation by alluvion, natural drainage, mechanical drainage - Porte Vinciane. The important 20th century reclamation projects led to the building of a great quantity of minor constructions and sluice- gates and to the movement of about 12 million cubic meters of land for the creation of 858 km of channels. The territory was divided in “upper lands” with natural drainage and “lower lands” with mechanical drainage made possible by dewatering pumps with electric engines.”16

The po delta is divided into two by governance. The pilot area covers the basin of the Po River, a single territorial entity ruled by two different administrations the provinces of Ferrara and Rovigo - and located respectively in the Region of Emilia Romagna and Veneto. The territories are flown through the main Italian rivers: the Po, the Adige and the Rhine. In the modern delta, reclamation has not been so intensive, and large wetlands have been kept flooded for fishing or recreational use. Many human activities in the Po delta are linked to water. Marshes and lagoons have generally been exploited for fishing. Traditional fishing (in particular, eel farming) has been one of the most important economic resources of this area for centuries. Salt marshes were transformed into fishing lagoons (the so-called valli) by bringing in seawater through artificial canals (some of them were excavated many centuries ago), in order to keep the lagoon mouths active and to favor the circulation of the water. Agriculture, one of the main local activities, has become less and less profitable. “Since the 1970s the small size agricultural plot structure, which was the result of the previous reclaiming system, changed drastically: now-a-days only 8.776 hectares have survived out of the 26.391 hectares of various and complex cultivation methods that were once employed. The remaining 19.463 hectares became large agricultural areas with an extensive production owned by few land owners.”17 Since the early consolidation of the delta, the economic weakness of the area has allowed a sort of colonization operated by non-local important actors. There are three main local actors in the territory, the fishery cooperatives (Pescatori), the land reclamation agency (Consorzio di Bonifica) and the National park. Though each of these actors seem isolated from one another, the condition isn’t so, they form a loop of relationship with one another which informs their effective functioning. It is by the pumping of land that agricultural land is available in the delta and by the formations of the fishery cooperatives that ach city caters to its economic redevelopment. However effective they seem to the overall territory, they cause hindrance in each other’s activities as well. The constant pumping of water from subsiding areas, leads to pumping of water / sediments into the coastal lagoons which effects the aquaculture productivity and by designation of certain areas as natural reserves, there is a lack of development in economically productive areas. The chapter looks into all the local actors to understand a close link to the geomorphology and formulates a design strategy to aid an overall change in territorial organization.

social INTERSECTIONS

ENGINEERED DELTA. artificial levees

ENGINEERED DELTA. irrigation and drainage canal network

Figure 58 (top). Map of the artificial levees built that embank the Po river and its distributary channels 76

Figure 59 (bottom). Network of canals for irrigation and drainage of farmland built by the public agents for land reclamation

social INTERSECTIONS

ENGINEERED DELTA. urban patterns

ENGINEERED DELTA. agricultural patterns

Figure 60 (top). Map of the major concentration of urban settlements in the Po delta Figure 61 (bottom). Map of the land being destined for agricultural purposes, which amounts to a 90% of the whole delta

social INTERSECTIONS

DELTA ACTORS. land reclamation

Figure 62 (top). Photograph of construction works of river embankments (artificial levees) and drainage canals 78

Figure 63 (bottom). Maps of the extensive land reclamation projects carried on in the area of Valle di Comacchio through the process of colmata

social INTERSECTIONS

Figure 64 Land reclamation works in Valle di Mezzano, Ferrara, during the 1950’s

“Land Reclamation of a vast system of lagoons and marshes which extend along the Adriatic coast between Venice and Ravenna was put in practice since the very moment this region has been inhabited.”18 All dwellers in the delta lands since have lived in fear of floods, of the gradual extension of existing swamps and lagoons, and of the return of sea waters. In ancient times there were forests, pastures, villages, and flourishing cities where the salt waters of the Valli now extend. Yet, very much of the delta could not be put to use because of poor drainage or the infiltration of sea water. Whether by a lowering of the land, or by a rising of the sea, water slowly took possession of the delta. At the time of the execution of the Porto Viro cut off, both the States of Venice and Ferrara sustained massive projects of land reclamation in their ongoing war for the control of greater extensions of territory. Colmata is the name of the method put in practice to achieve this goal. This activity is based in surrounding a wetland area with walls to prevent the exit of water and control its entry. The idea is to trap the sediments without letting water to overflow. The practice would last around 10 years, depending on the enclosed area, and the result would be the general rise of new land by a few centimeters.

Figure 65 Water pumping station built during the 1930’s

The development of steam and coal power in the Nineteenth century introduced new methods of land reclamation. The Conzorcio di Bonifica, which translates as the Company of Land Reclamation, was founded to become the main agent in the delta in charge of guaranteeing the security of the land from floods. Pumping stations, irrigation canals and drainage canals were built across de whole delta. Today, this has become the main method of land reclamation, and the government institutions that practice it are very influential in the region, both over the physical landscape and the population. Nevertheless, this approach comes at a great financial cost, since the energy amounts requiered increase every year; local population pays for 80% of this service, while the remaining 20% is covered by the Italian national government through tax collection. The difficulty for the authorities to meet the economic demands of the system, may possibly lead to a reduction of the facilities functioning on site, which may increase the risk of floods. At present, this is seen as a negative situation by the population, but, from our understanding it is a window of opportunity to rethink the way the territory operates.

Figure 66 19th century navigation channel transformed into irrigation canal to supply farmland with water

Figure 67 Agricultural patterns resulting from the process of colmata

social INTERSECTIONS

DELTA ACTORS. aquaculture

Many human activities in the Po delta are linked to water. Marshes and lagoons have generally been exploited for fishing. Traditional fishing (eel farming, in particular) has been one of the most important economic resources of this area for centuries. Salt marshes were transformed into fishing lagoons by bringing in seawater through artificial canals, in order to keep the lagoon mouths active and to favor the circulation of the water. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The tidal range is approximately 80 cm (average), and marshes were regulated in order to obtain favourable conditions for fish breeding. Salinity varies considerably in connection with management. The average values were 15-25% in winter and spring, 25-35% in summer and fall.â&#x20AC;?19 The development of new techniques of mollusc cultivation allows intensive fishfarming, in particular eel and mullet in some basins of the Valli di Comacchio and of the Venetian side of the delta; clams and other shellfish grow in the Sacca di Goro, Sacca degli Scadovari and other smaller lagoons.

Figure 68 (top). Map of the Po Delta on the existing network between urban settlements and their centers of production

social INTERSECTIONS

There are currently 14 fishry cooperatives (Cooperative Pescatori) based on the delta, which control the production from the coastal lagoons (valli de pesca). Each of these cooperatives are located near the lagoons. The infrastructure used is artisanal and the production means are not highly industrialized, since the fish grow in a natural environment rather than on controlled farms. Their main activity is preparing the fish for consumption before it is sold locally or exported national and internationally. The cooperatives are under the control of the commune of the cities, therefore, economically benefitting those to which they belong to

Figure 69 (top). Network diagram of dredged water channels carrying the river water to the coastal lagoons, which maintains the balance between the salinity and fresh water supply in the lagoon and, hence, its productivity for aquaculture Figure 70 (bottom). Road network for the transportation of fish from the lagoons to the cities.

social INTERSECTIONS

DELTA ACTORS. methane extraction

Figure 71 (top). Map of the fields for methane extraction in the Po delta Figure 72 (bottom left). Aerial photograph of an exploitation field with the requiered infrastructures 82

Figure 73 (bottom right). Maps showing the growth of the coastal lagoons due to the effects of subsidence

social INTERSECTIONS

In 1950â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, with the exploitation of the mineral bed of the Po Delta, there were large scale industrial development. This included not only service industries but also the construction of many mineral extraction plants within the delta. Their number increased in a massive scale due to the conomic value of the mineral (methane) extracted. However, the direct consequence of this activity was the increase of the process of subsidence which was already in action due to natural causes. The extraction works was stopped in 1960â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and this slowly led to the abandonement of the delta as a potential industrial urbe. The subsidence, though gradual, still places a very important role in the current delta evolution. In a such a flat landscape as the delta, little or minimum variations in topography, even the slightest change of 1mm can drastically affect life on the delta.

Figure 74 (bottom). Analysis of the 30 year projected transformation of the Po delta topography due to the effects of methane extraction Figure 75 (next page). Cartographic representation of the social actors at play on the Po delta

ESSAY

Figure 01. Tom Stoppard’s view of Sidley Park as imagined by Lancelot Brown Ref: http://cdn.spectator.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/6880823-1.jpg

ECOLOGY FOR ECONOMY: a critique on landscape urbanism By Shruthi Padmanabhan Anthropocentric view has downsized ecological identity to creation of open spaces. The effortless accessibility of nature right outside our doorstep has only help encourage this view point .The introduction of the term landscape urbanism by Charles Waldheim emphasis landscape as a supplant to architecture and its application responsive to the social, cultural and ecological model in the urban context. However the misguided approach to ecology as a mode of strategic economic growth has resulted in concentrated patterns of development with segregation of natural and ecological aspect.

an ecological model is a derivative of the historic urban precedents like Central park, NY.

Introduction

Central park New York designed by Fredrick law Olmsted and The High Line, designed by James corner field operations are examples of ecological models of landscape which largely influenced the economic structure in the territory. The design and construction of central park was formulated for creating a democratic, unified environment for the increasingly socially and economically heterogeneous population of New York City and provide psychological stress relieve for the people of the society living in the densely populated unhygienic city conditions. However the end result was quite different. The presence of a large centrally located park in the middle of the city created a higher land value system which attracted a higher class society. As the entrance to the park were also only through carriages, the elite only afforded to enter? Apart from the revenue generating characteristic of neighbourhood, there was also a political agenda of creating a part of the city as populated with people of higher class camouflaged under the term of an ecologically viable park in a city. fig (2)

Ecology is a Greek word derived from Eco (house) and logy (study of) and is defined as the ‘the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings’ (1). ‘Man needs nature as much as nature needs man’ (2). This provokes the thought of interconnectivity between the two systems as one cannot survive without the other. But what is nature conceived as? This can be discussed in absolute detail without any definitive conclusion, as the perception of nature is highly varied and subjective. The aesthetic quality of nature stems our need to possess and apply it between the urban city growth.

Figure 02. Central Park entry through carriages for higher class of society Ref: https://ephemeralnewyork.wordpress.com/tag/gilded-age-new-york/

Corner in his essay Eidetic operations and new landscapes states ‘…. the development of landscape architecture as a modern profession derives in large measure from an impulse to shape large areas of land according to prior imaging’ (3). From the beginning of the profession of landscape architecture, the replication of nature was the key ideology for its conception. However after the industrial revolution, nature between the unhygienic, industrial urban sprawl became more a necessity. The integration of nature as landscape into planning strategies gave way to a new refined use of landscape to not only improve the quality of life in the city but also apply it in the urban context. (fig1) The drastic change of ecology as landscape through time is characterised by the urban flux. Nature, once unattainable and sublime is an easily accessible quantity outside your doorstep. The origin of landscape urbanism as

Landscape Urbanism Landscape urbanism is a broad science which establishes equilibrium between the flaws of urban planning and landscape architecture by promising ecology as a coherent force in infrastructural and socio-economic development. However does landscape urbanism help provide a strategic disguise to ecology by its commodification and its implementation for economic benefit?

After the enormous success of this model, there was a constant use of landscape in-order to recreate a revenue generative structure with its use. Among the contemporary projects, the High Line in New York is a project which uses the same strategic initiative that Olmsted used once in his design for Central Park.

Landscape Urbanism and Economy Highline, New York Highline, originally an elevated freight train track

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

ESSAY

Figure 03. Old Freight Train Tracks , The High Line Ref: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Western_Electric_ complex_NYC_1936.jpg

(fig3) carrying industrial supplies to factories along a 13 mile long stretch was erected in 1939. The constant accidents and increase in interstate trucking led to the decline of its usage, resulting in its abandonment in 1989. The site tend to develop an ecology on its own, with the growth of weeds and plants, as the tracks remained unused Recognition of The High line as a site of urban interest by Robert Hammond and led to its regeneration as a linear urban park to re-simulate collective infrastructural, communal and environmental organisation. With a budget of 152 dollars as the initial investment for the construction of the high line project, much of its funds come from private – public partnerships.(6) With the change in fund allocation for parks and open spaces in the city of New York, implemented by Mayor Bloomberg, from 1.4% to 0.37%, the landscape structure of New York has considerably transformed.(6) The no of people managing the landscape of the high line is approximately twice as much than the other park projects like Canarsie and Flatlands. In the Bronx, 6,970 acres are patrolled by five-to six security officers, while the High Line is patrolled by double the number.(6) Also, it was customary to pay 20% of the revenue generated to the government but with the realisation and implementation of the privatepublic partnership, the percentage paid to the city is greatly reduced.(6) In other words, with the constant feeding of the private sectors, a margin of variation in class is created through economic benefit of concentrated private realms, whereas the state fails in redistribution of revenue to smaller parks in the neighbourhood. The land value along the 10th avenue, abutting the high line has drastically increased after the introduction of 30 new construction sites. (fig 4) There has been a rapid capital accumulation through the commercial and residential developmental across lower west side of Manhattan. There have been arguments suggesting, the use of terms like urban green corridor, public space camouflage the economic strategy employed to generate capital and income by the project. This mode of exploitation of nature as it were, creating interdependent land value economy acts as a catalyst for the compact forms of concentrated privatisation. (fig 5) True conception of ‘landscape’ with these

examples as a money generating measure only accentuates the loop holes in the ecological model of Landscape urbanism. Whereas projects like eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier designed by a Dutch firm West 8, provide a relief of pecuniary prospects are not the only criteria of design.

Landscape Urbanism and Ecology Scheldt Storm Surge Barrier, Netherlands In the talk ‘Doors of Perception’ by Adriaan Gueze, the architect who envisioned the project, in 1995, he described it as ‘a beautiful example of relation of technology ….. With ecology of the delta’ (5). Aptly said so, the project utilises the ecological waste generated by the mussel industry to develop a unique system of interaction between the industrial and ecological aspect. .The project is based in Zeeland, Holland and is mainly characterised by the response to the North Sea storm in 1953. Construction of a dam was sort out as an environmental solution; however this not only involved the blocking of the estuary and destroying an existing variant ecosystem but also would have adverse effects on the mussel industry which was one of the main sources of economy in the city. Following, projects were involved in creating doors in-order to block the storm water only when necessary. This was done through the construction of islands. Economic factors restricted the completion of the project. West 8 was asked to create a proposal for rectifying the already existing damage by creating dunescapes. (fig 6)

Figure 04. High line _ Current Landscape Scheme Ref: http://www.asla.org/sustainablelandscapes/highline.html

However, due to the rather dramatic character of change implied with the creation of sand dune blocking the riverscape, Adriaan Gueze suggested a different proposal by creating an enormous plateau where ‘when you drive there, you are `launched’ by your momentum and then, suddenly, on a 10-metre level, you watch this incredible panorama of the sea and understand what is happening‘(4). This was coupled with the creation of laying shells [mussels and cockle] across the plateau as they were easily available waste from the industries. The creation of the gridded pattern of black and white shells had an interesting effect on the birds which flock at the bay. It was noticed that black birds sit on the black shells and the white on the white shells in-order to

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

ESSAY

Figure 05. Recent Development near HighLine, NYC Ref: http://o.homedsgn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/The-High-line-15. jpg

ECOLOGY FOR ECONOMY: a critique on landscape urbanism By Shruthi Padmanabhan camouflage them from the predators. Fig(7) This project realises landscape urbanism in its finest context as it is caters to both ecological and infrastructural systems. By retaining the existing tidal regime and avoiding the block of the estuary it also maintains the economic market of commercial fishing. Waldheim states ’...The historical precedents for urban parkways typically reproduce a pastoral image of “nature” without intervening in their ecological surroundings in any substantial way”( 5). (Fig 8)

address the issue of urban morphologies or the emergence of settlement patterns over time. It concentrates on their disappearance and erasure. The problem of this approach is it amnesia and blindness to pre-existing structures, urban ecologies and morphological patterns.’ In other words the discourse at present does not respond to the different social and cultural aspects of urban development thereby not being able to provide a solution to the urban ecology and morphological patterns.

In his essay Waldheim himself states ‘.contrasting this tradition [integration of landscape with infrastructure] of contemporary practises of landscape urbanism reject the camouflaging of ecological systems with pastoral images of “nature”. Rather contemporary landscape urbanism practises recommend the use of infrastructural systems and public landscapes they engender as the very ordering mechanism of urban field itself, shaping and shifting the organisation of urban settlement and its inevitably economic, political and social futures.’

Conclusion

Figure 06. Landscape plan for Scheldt storm surge barrier, Netherlands West8. Ref: http://www.west8.nl/projects/landscape/landscape_design_eastern_ scheldt_storm_surge_barrier/

In conclusion, the use of landscape as an economic model for capital generator creates privatised infrastructure which caters only to a certain portion of the society. Though projects like these create a general upliftment in the society and create a better quality of life, it is restricted to its periphery. Heavy funding by the government for these projects only because a situation in which small neighbourhood parks lose their importance and are not catered to. Also, the However with certain projects like Eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier and Schiphol Amsterdam Airport landscape still catering to the ecological aspect alongside with the economics of site conditions. The ideal approach to landscape urbanism has to be an ecological – economic model where both are attended to and are at par with each other. It is hence very important to study the social and cultural aspects with the site along with its ecological and economic aspects in-order to be able to respond to critically and provide a comprehensible solution. As said by Grahame Shame, ‘ The recent discourse surrounding landscape urbanism does not yet begin to

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

ESSAY

Figure 07. Different coloured shells suitable landings for different brid types Ref: http://www.west8.nl/projects/landscape_design_eastern_scheldt_storm_ surge_barrier/

Notes 0. Charles Waldheim - Landscape as Urbanism: The Landscape Urbanism Reader (46) 1. Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecology 2. The Ecological Thought: Timothy Morton 3: Eidetic Operations and new Landscape: James Corner 4 & 5. Adriaan Geuze, “Black and White” (lecture presented at the Doors of Perception 3 Conference, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, November 1995). 6. Charles Waldheim – Landscape urbanism: a genealogy: praxis 4 (16)

Select Bibliography 1. The landscape urbanism reader: Charles Waldheim 2. The Ecological Thought: Timothy Morten 3. Landscape urbanism: A genealogy: Charles Waldheim 4. Eidetic operations and New Landscapes: James Corner 5. Critiquing Landscape Urbanism, AA View on New York’s High Line: Leon A Morenas 6. Friends of High Line (2010): “High Line History”, the High Line, http://www.thehighline.org/about/high-line-history 7. Infrastructure Adrift: West 8’s Shell Project: Laura Tepper http://landscapeurbanism.com/article/laura-tepper/

Figure 08. Storm Surge Barrier as an Infrastructural element Ref: http://www.west8.nl/projects/landscape_design_eastern_scheldt_storm_ surge_barrier/

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

Figure 76 (top). Pescatori (fishermen) community and Porto Tolle electric power plant near Po di Pila river mouth (picture taken during field trip to site)

DELTA URBE. A LANDSCAPE DESIGN STRATEGY

DELTA URBE

Figure 77 (top). First design proposal for a speculative reconfiguration of the Po Delta based on sediment management

DELTA URBE

DELTA URBE. design strategy

As mentioned earlier, the current system of land reclamation is directed towards the constant repossession of the same land again and again. Our proposal aims at challenging the current land reclamation scheme of water management and restoring it to the sediment managament approach practiced back in the days of the Venice Republic, when the Porto Viro cut off was thought of and finally executed. Though the territory at present is a highly engineered landscape, we propose to change the existing system and provide one which functions not only to reclaim land but also to activate new economic conditions in the Po delta. This new system of engineered landscape, understands the dynamic nature of a delta and also addresses the current condition of subsidense in order to change the socio economic conditions in the landscape and transforms the region into an attractive territory for people to inhabit and develop. We start by reading the negative connotation of subsidence under a positive light. This condition is an opportunity to reactivate the forces that originated the delta in the first place, but in a manner that addresses the necessities of the existing population and plans for its future ones. The analysis of the subsidence topography and of the system of artificial levees becomes the starting point for the generation of a “geomorphologically” driven delta landscape. The proposal encompasses two distinct phases: one of flooding and one of land growth. The former implies the release of water from the river towards the areas of major sinking. After this, the latter stage starts to unravel within the recently formed water landscapes. To control these processes, we set forward a set of rules and design guidelines which help us direct the agents of change in the landscape. The design strategy is, hence, based on a calculated speculation of the distribution of sediments throughout the territory. The concept of DELTA URBE becomes then our interpretation for a new model of organization for the delta landscapes, in which the relevant existing social formations are preserved and intersected with an active system that creates a network of new landforms. The model for the Delta Urbe is based on the concepts of “Enclave” and “Armature” developed by David Grahame Shane in his book “Urban Design since 1945-A Global Perspective” (2011). The former is applied to the areas within the existing subsiding areas of the delta we intend to flood during the first phase of the proposal; these zones, mainly urban settelements and road infrastructures, become an archipielago of islands induced to rethink their new physical borders through different patterns of occupation. The sediment machine, is the “armature” that will reconnect the “enclaves” between themselves through the successive formation of land. The reclaimed territories become areas for the natural expansion of the urban settlements. There is not only one version of the DELTA URBE. The system can be adapted to whichever human scenarios in the territory gain more relevance. Therefore, the emerging landforms will vary accordingly. This is where the speculative aspect of the proposal comes into play. The representation of the delta formations may result from an intuitive understanding of the geomorphologic processes that create deltas. However, the logics that give structure to the proposal are based on a plausible alternative strategy for reorganizing the territory based on its own physical and human characteristics.

DELTA URBE

STRATEGY GUIDELINES. subsidence topography

Figure 78 (top). Slope analysis of the subsidence topography, the flatter and lower areas are shown in the lighter color

DELTA URBE

STRATEGY GUIDELINES. water flow

Corbola Cluster

Mezzogoro Cluster

Ariano Cluster Mazzorno Cluster

Grignella Cluster

Rivรก Cluster 2

Loreo Cluster

Rivรก Cluster 1

Porto Viro Cluster

Porto Tolle Cluster

Scardovari Cluster

Water flow direction

Figure 79 (top). Identification of water flow direction from rivers towards the center points of subsidence bowls

DELTA URBE

STRATEGY GUIDELINES. infrastructure POTENTIAL ROAD NETWORK By the analyses, these road networks should be preserved in the event of flooding inorder to maintain certain urban armatures towards city enclaves.

ROAD NETWORK [City to City] Exisiting network of infrastructure between multiple cities shows a lack of interconnectivity

ROAD NETWORK [City to Aquaculture ] Exisitng links between aquaculture production areas and city centers shows a lack of direct infrastructure connection to near by citites

EXISTING ROAD NETWORK Network of infrastructure supports the exisitng city in linking different urban settlements and also linking diferent productive areas.

Figure 80 (top). Road network analysis

DELTA URBE

STRATEGY GUIDELINES. infrastructure POTENTIAL CANAL NETWORK The analyses ends with the understaning of preserving some canals for transporting water and using these for channeling water through subsiding areas. The remaining canals can be used as possible sediment supply channels

CANAL NETWORK [City to City] These canals can also prove to act as micro mobility infrastructure for the exisiting urban enclaves

CANAL NETWORK [City to Aquaculture] An analyses show that the interconnectivity between different aquaculture can be increased by usig the existing system of canals to supply fresh water

EXISTING CANAL NETWORK An intrinsic system of canals in the territory maintains infrastructure for agriculture and also caters to the water pumping stations for land reclamation processes

Figure 81 (top). Canal network analysis

DELTA URBE

STRATEGY GUIDELINES. levees

Figure 82 (top). Identification of the river leveeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lowest points, according to the subsidence topography (network analysis) from where it would be more plausible to release water for flooding

DELTA URBE

STRATEGY GUIDELINES. flood areas

Corbola Cluster

Mezzogoro Cluster

Ariano Cluster Mazzorno Cluster

Grignella Cluster

Rivรก Cluster 2

Loreo Cluster

Rivรก Cluster 1

Porto Viro Cluster

Porto Tolle Cluster

Scardovari Cluster

Figure 83 (top). Estimation of the maximum size of flooding clusters, based on the reaction of rivers towards the subsidence bowls, and bounded by the existing network of canals.

DELTA URBE

TERRITORIAL INTERSECTIONS. delta formations and patterns of occupation in phases

Introduction of obstacles for the diversion of water, which can be used as nodes of infrastructures for water control or recreational zones

PHASE 0 Floodgate at river for the release of water and sediments

Floodgate at protection boundary for the release of water and sediments

Construction of mechanisms, such as floodgates and canals, that allow the control of water and sediments introduced into a subsidense cluster. These infrastructures give the designer the decision of where to assign sediments and water along the whole network established throught the delta

Floodgate at marshland buffer zone for the collection of water

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Figure 119 (top). Drawing of the interventions necessary to place on the territory before the process of land growth begins

DELTA URBE

Levee structures around urban areas

Double buffer zone strategy around transportation networks

PHASE 0

Buffer 2. 50m width area of ecological reservoir, typically, marshlands

Before the flooding stage of the design strategy takes place, first areas of protection must have been defined. These will be considered as enclave of relevant infrastructure, such as roads, or major population centers, that should not be lost with the floods. Using the catalogue of typologies of interventions, a levee-like structure is proposed to surround the cities and valuable lands, while a strategy of permeable buffer zones is assigned for the protection of roads, railways, etc.

Buffer 1. 50m width area for linear park development Buffer 1. 200m width area for urban development

Figure 120 (top). Drawing of the preparation and definition of protection areas around enclaves

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DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for â&#x20AC;&#x153;dryâ&#x20AC;? crops

Agroforestry

Terraced obstacle for diversion of water and sediments

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 1. (+1 year) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

Once sediments are released the process of land formation begins. Before stable land emerges, marshlands is the typical delta landscape to be constituted. These marshlands are zones of great ecological value, and their presence is fundamental to fertilize the soil below so that it can become suitable for agriculture in future stages.

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

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Figure 121 (top). Drawing of the initial stage of land formation

DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for â&#x20AC;&#x153;dryâ&#x20AC;? crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 2. (+2/4 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

First land emerges, while the growing process moves forward. Following the logics of delta formation, levees are formed or built in order to guarantee the movement of sediments to the front of the channel mouth, therefore assuring that the process of land growth continues. The new land is no stable yet, their first occupation should be with water resistant vegetation or crops, like rice. Planting of trees, and the configuration of forest zones, help stabilize the land and add ecologic and economic value through the practice of agroforestry.

Urban parks

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

Figure 122 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

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DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for â&#x20AC;&#x153;dryâ&#x20AC;? crops

Agroforestry

Closed branch until there is land that will help accumulating sediments

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 3. (+4/6 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

The rate of growth of the land informs the the distribution of sediment. In order to accelerate the emergence of land is recommended to release sediments when there are elemnts that trap the particles, such as dykes, levees, or other growing delta landforms. This will avoid the dispersion of sediments in the flooded area.

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

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Figure 123 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for â&#x20AC;&#x153;dryâ&#x20AC;? crops

Agroforestry

Movable piers for fishermen or tourism

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 4. (+6/8 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

When land is been occupied for urban developments, it is recommended to introduce at the front of the emerged land piers or marinas. The structures built for this activity help accumulate sediments, therefore, accelerating the process, but also they become an attractive element for developments behind it.

Urban parks

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

Figure 124 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

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DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for “dry” crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 5. (+8/10 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

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Figure 125 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for “dry” crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 6. (+10/12 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

Figure 126 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

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DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for “dry” crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 7. (+14/16 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

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Figure 127 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for “dry” crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 8. (+16/18 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

Figure 128 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

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DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for â&#x20AC;&#x153;dryâ&#x20AC;? crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 14 (+28/30 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

Urban parks

After several stages of land formation have happened, the older land is stable and secure from risks of flooding, This introduces the possibility of practicing crop rotation in land destined for agriculture purposes.

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

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Figure 129 (top). Drawing of the progression of land formation in phases

DELTA URBE

PATTERNS FOR DELTA LANDFORM OCCUPATION

Rice paddies

Farming fields for â&#x20AC;&#x153;dryâ&#x20AC;? crops

Agroforestry

Ponds for aquaculture, sport fishing or water reservoirs

Urban plots for housing, retail, and institutional development

PHASE 19. (+38/40 years) Urban plots for industries or manufacturing

There is no final stage for this process, per se, as long as the river keeps carrying enough sediments to facilitate the growth of land. Nevertheless, at the culmination of a design intervention, branches transporting sediments should be channeled and directed towards the canal system present in the territory to guarantee they will get carried away towards the coast.

Urban parks

The final result of the design offers an image of a landscape that grows constantly on top and around itself, creating an intricate series of interconnected terraces. The levees built on each stage become a new road network in a lesser rigid and static interpreattion of the delta landscapes.

Marinas for sport fishing or aquaculture

Figure 130 (top). Drawing of a final scenario of the design proposal

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Figure 131 (top). Artificial levee along the course of Po di Maistra, with road network running parallel to it, farmland on one side and river bank forests on the other (picture taken during field trip to site)

CONCLUSION

conclusion

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Figure 132 (top). Final stage of a speculative territorial intervention for the Po delta based on the forces of the river and the sediments carried by it

conclusion

Deltas are fragile geomorphic features, and can change dramatically with modest modifications in the controlling environmental conditions. Already, thirty-three major deltas collectively include significant area (~26,000 km2) below local mean sea level and another ~70,000 km2 of vulnerable area below 2 m. Now, this fragility should not be interpreted as a negative condition, but rather as one that conveys the changing nature of deltas and their capacity to heal themselves. Jane Hutton believes, in the quote that opened this book, that through landscape architecture and urbanism designers participate in a “monumental” shift of materials form one place to another. We are convinced, as a result of this research and design project, that deltas themselves are such a monumental project. Through our design proposal, we hope to provide a comprehensive methodology towards developing a philosophy of design development for such fragile yet dynamic landscapes. By understanding the geomorphologic processes and working with it, we develop a territory which is responsive to its nature and not force it to freeze it in a condition not equiped to handle economic or social transformations. We have mentioned throughout this book that the Po delta is heavily engineered. This observation should not be read in a derogative manner. After all, it has been well established that the present day Po Delta was formed as a consequence of the combination of tehcnical knowledge, creativity and resourcefulness; this delta exemplifies the relevance and the extension of human impact on the territory. For that reason, our design strategy challenges an interpretation of engineered landscape in which evrything is controlled and constrained. It is our objective through this proposal to use engineering techniques already in place on the delta to release the natural processes carried on by the rivers and the coast to speculate on possible new ways of organizing the territory. The present model of occupation of the delta is not succsessful in making it an attractive region to inhabit and invest in. Outward migration, with the resultant abandonement of infrastructures, is a common scenario in the Po delta, as well as in many others. The relevance of the Delta Urbe relies on its adaptability to different scenarios and conditions, while addressing the significant issue of subsidence, which makes it plausible to replicate in other territories affected by similar conditions. Nevertheless, it has to be acknoewledged that this model of understanding deltas may clash with the perception local population has of their own environment. Fear of water and the embeded preconception of a historic battle fought and won against it, encourage the mental connection of flooding with lose. Yet, on the face of the continuous rise of energy costs to keep land “safe” from water, we believe the strategy of flooding to build new land is a pertinent one. The present model applied to preserve deltas as they are is unsustainable in the long run, and it may lead to greater disruptions in the the territory. Irina Overeem states in Vulberability of Delta Systems: “What would a collapse look like? A collapse may include complete loss of wetlands and concomitant biodiversity, cities and villages and the associated infrastructure flooded, permanent loss of fishing areas, farming lands, and valuable forests, and rapid shoreline retreat. Future preservation of deltas will become increasingly difficult and costly “19 Therefore, instead of preserving the deltas, our proposal aims to reclaim their nature through a sequential process of interaction between land and water, in which deltas form an erode continously. Four hundred years ago, the Venetians designed the modern Po delta by speculating with the river and its sediments. The Delta Urbe might be the tool for every generation to build their own versions of the delta with the guidance of geomophology in the design, or as Ian Mcharg explians it: “May it is that these simple ecological lessons will become known and incorporated into the ordinance so that people continue to enjoy the special delights of life by the sea“20

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essay

Cover. Time Magazine (1942). Fictional Nazi military scenarios to invade continental U.S.

Cartographies of Propaganda: mapping with a political agency By Fernando Blanco Mapping and the State: the construction of political cartographies “That Blaeu [Willem, author of the Blaeu Atlas Maior, 1672] was proud of his achievement is clear from his address to his ‘gentle reader’ at the beginning of the atlas. ‘Geography has paved the way not only for happiness and comfort of humanity but for its glory,’ he writes. ‘Were kingdoms not separated by rivers, mountains, straits, isthmuses and oceans, empires would have no confines nor wars a conclusion.’ He might have added ‘nor wars a cause or purpose,’...”1

Willem Blaeu recognizes, as quoted by Simon Garfield in the book On The Map (2013), the existence of empires and relates them to the physical features present on the landscape: those that both define and identify them. To such an optimistic interpretation, Garfield argues that it is precisely these not what keep empires apart, but what clashes them together into conflict. Figure 01. Gutiérrez, D. (1562) Americae sive Quartae Orbis Partis Nova et Exactissima Descriptio

Maps have been employed throughout history as a symbol of power and nationhood, connected to the emergence of the State. As a symbol, mapping has served to establish the notion of the State by visually constructing a territory over the land and the people on it, and, in this way, validating and legitimizing the execution of authority, proclaiming national unity, and even mobilizing its citizens against other States. (Wood, 2010) Elements represented on maps are, generally, verifiable, measurable, quantifiable, etc. They may be obtained through observation, survey, or exploration of the territory; all of which are performed with scientific rigor, giving maps an appearance of factual and undisputable veracity. Nevertheless, it would be foolish not to acknowledge the inherent subjectivity (or intentionality) in the act of assembling all of these true data together. Thus, drawing maps (and assembling cartographies together) becomes an activity with a political agency in the service of the State: a tool for propaganda disguised as scientific representation. During the Renaissance, maps became more widely produced in general, thanks in great measure to the invention of the print, and their use took on a more cultural and political character (Barber and Harper, 2010). Italy was one of the most important centers of production,

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where the competition for resources between city States in the central and northern regions led to an early awareness of the practical utility of maps for military and strategic purposes, as well as civilian uses such as the planning of forts, canals, and aqueducts (Barber and Harper, 2010). In consequence, the rise of the modern States has happened hand in hand with the extensive use of cartographic propaganda. During the Age of Exploration and Colonization of transoceanic territories by European power nations, maps became highly coveted instruments employed to claim ownerships over the new land. For example, The Americas (1562) (Figure 01), drawn by Diego Gutiérrez, served as a powerful celebration of Spain’s New World Empire. In this map, King Felipe II is shown riding a stormy Atlantic Ocean on a chariot; this representation recalls the classic world, by equating the monarch to the Roman God Neptune, and thus, rooting his authority to the origins of European civilization. References like this were intended to strengthen Spain’s image in front of its neighbors and its claim to the American continent. In this map, and in other of its contemporaries, the geographical information represented was valuable, but its real purpose was informed by all the other elements present in this pictorial representation: the sea monsters and other mythological figures refer to the dangers of the unknown within the voyage to reach the new territories; the difference between the waves of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the Caribbean Sea show an understanding of the natural phenomena; and the inclusion of shields (or coat of arms) together with the outlining of the coasts with the names of the new settlements emphasize the ownership of the new lands over the indigenous population and to the other colonial empires. In Britain, there were two basic types of maps: the manuscript (or true geographical map) used for navigation around the globe, and printed or propaganda maps used to lay claim to new territories and to influence international views about the country where the map originated. The Crown and the Royal Court for reasons of security and secrecy safeguarded manuscript maps, while printed maps, on the other hand, were “massproduced, generously distributed, colorful and printed on cheaper and more affordable materials such as paper and often accompanied books

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

essay

Figure 01 (section). Gutiérrez, D. (1562) Americae sive Quartae Orbis Partis Nova et Exactissima Descriptio

and other printed materials as a sort of bonus.”2 These maps were used as propaganda they were specifically manufactured to ensure they did not divulge sensitive information. Maps during the colonial period were also used to organize and rank the rest of the world according to the European powers. Edward Quin represented, in Historical Atlas in a Series of Maps of the World (1830) (Figure 02), his euro-centric understanding of civilization by differentiating through the use of color. In the introduction of the atlas Quin wrote, “we have covered alike in all the periods with a flat olive shading...barbarous and uncivilized countries such as the interior of Africa at the present moment.”3

The rise of Cartographic Propaganda In the later nineteenth and twentieth centuries the political potential of cartographic representations became used more widely and began to be manipulated into more obvious propagandistic purposes. Maps can stand in as symbols for abstract ideas because they are familiar to the masses and they harbor emotive connotations. Maps are often incorporated as an emblematic element in a larger design or are used to provide the visual framework on which a scenario could be played out (Barber and Harper, 2010). This period of geopolitical cartographic development continued advanving until it reached its period of maximum production during the years in between wars, associated mainly to Nazi Germany and the various other actors involved in World War II. The development of cartographic propaganda is closely related to the wider Nazi propaganda machine (Tyner, 1982). German propagandists discovered the advantages of cartography in the reinterpretation of reality. For the Nazi regime, the most important goal in producing maps was their efficiency in providing communication between the ruler and the masses. The use of maps in this manner can be referred to as “suggestive cartography”4, as being capable of producing dynamic representations of power. (Speier, 1941) There were three different categories of propaganda maps produced by the Nazi establishment: first, maps intended to illustrate the condition of Germany as a unified population and nation;

second, maps taking an aim at the morale of the Allies via a mental offensive specifically designed to keep the U.S. neutral in the war by changing the perception of threats; and third, maps as blue-prints of the post-war world. During this period, such approach to cartography expanded to Italy, Spain, and Portugal as cartographers and propagandists found inspiration in the “positivistic trends of the German world.”5. This was an interpretation that clearly revealed the ideological allegiances of the time. The book Flotte und Luftwaffe. Wehrpolitisches Taschenbuch (Army, Navy and Air Force) (1935) is an example of the first category of cartographic propaganda produced in this period. It is a small book that wanted to depict Germany as a country surrounded by hostile neighbors, and complemented it with numerous photographs of the military forces of other countries. The map Demilitarized Germany (1935) (Figure 03), colors Germany’s surrounding countries in black solid color to represent them as menaces; the depiction of the frontier regions in black lines only contributes to underline the idea of fragility of the nation’s integrity. A second map also contained in the same book, called With an insufficient military, Germany can be blockaded both by land and sea (Figure 04), was drawn to seed in the population fear and enmity towards the other countries by recalling the pain and necessities experienced during the Allied blockade while fighting World War I. in this case, black, solid and dented lines represent the forced constraints that could be imposed to Germany by other continental powers, while thick black arrows pushing into Germany, depict the potential for an invasion. The decision to assign affinities or relationships between territories by using the same filling patterns establishes a continental network of possible allegiances or imperial aspirations (like France and northern Africa that even have a connecting black arrow in between); not giving Germany any filling pattern, like the sea, only helps but to raise the sensation of vulnerability. Funnily enough, the Allied media employed the representation techniques conveyed by the German cartographers to fake Nazi military cartographies that would plant in the former’s audiences a sense of insecurity and fear towards any possible act of aggression. This more openly use of maps as propaganda continued into the Cold War period, after the

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Figure 02 (section). Quin, E. (1830). The discovery of America A.D. 1492 in “An Historical Atlas; In a Series of Maps of the World as Known at Different Periods”

Cartographies of Propaganda: mapping with a political agency By Fernando Blanco conclusion of World War II. Cartographers from the United States modified projections to create a menacing image of the Soviet Union by making it appear larger and, therefore, more threatening. This approach was also applied to other nearby communist countries, thereby accentuating the perception in the expansion of communism throughout the world. In the issue of Time Magazine published on April 1, 1946, a map entitled Communist Contagion (Figure 05), focused on the communist threat of the Soviet Union. In this map the strength of the communist power was enhanced by a split-spherical representation of Europe and Asia that made the former seem larger as a result of the division at the center of the drawing. Communist expansion was also emphasized in this map as it presented the Soviet Union in a lively and solid red color, a shade that is commonly associated with danger (and communism as a whole). Neighboring states were categorized in terms of the likelihood of them falling under the control of the Soviet Union. Similarly, to the Nazi cartographies printed in Army, Navy and Air Force, this American map uses the technique of filling with different patterns (but the same shade of red, applied to the Soviet Union) the countries represented. Two elements stand out from the construction of this map, and of its propagandistic message. The first one refers to the very consciously chosen point of view; the author was not going for real size projections of the territories, on the contrary, the distorted aerial perspective was clearly meant to contribute with the intention to communicate to American readers the menacing nature of the new political rival. The second element refers to the use of language. It is easy to think that maps are just constructed through drawings, but the use of texts is also an important part of the composition as a whole, one that informs the images with a specific tone. In the case of the Communist Contagion, using the language of disease (states were referred to as quarantined, infected or exposed) add to the presentation of these countries as dangerous or threatening. More generally, during the Cold War period, small-scale maps served to make potential conflicts appear more menacing. Some maps were made to make Vietnam appear closer to Singapore and Australia, or Afghanistan to the Indian Ocean. Similarly, maps illustrating rocket positions used a polar azimuth projection with

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the North Pole at its center, which gave the map reader the perception that there existed a relatively small distance between the countries on opposing sides of the Cold War. (Black, 1997).

Conventions of Cartographic Propaganda Within the wide set of conventions used in mapping, there are some with which cartographic propaganda engage more frequently to convey its message; some of which have already been mentioned in previous paragraphs. For example, scale, map projection, and symbolization are characteristics of cartography that can be selectively applied to transform a map into cartographic propaganda. Scales are used to relate the real dimensions of an object and the ones of its drawn representation. Because of the need for a scale, the cartographer often makes use of map generalization as a way to ensure clarity. The size of the scale affects the use of generalization; a smaller scale forces a higher level of generalization. (Monmonier, 1996) There are two types of map generalization: geometric and content. The methods of geometric generalization are selection, simplification, displacement, smoothing, and enhancement. Content generalization promotes clarity of the purpose or meaning of a map by filtering out details irrelevant to the map’s function or theme. Content generalization has two essential elements; selection and classification. Selection serves to suppress information and classification is the choice of relevant features (Monmonier, 1996). In order for propaganda to be truly effective, its message has to be clear, simple and subtle for the audiences to assimilate it without consciously noticing. This is the reason why, information in the given examples of twentieth century maps is flat and generic; just brush strokes and carefully selected texts make up the drawings. Map projection is the method of unfolding the curved, three-dimensional surface of the planet into a flat, two-dimensional plane. The flat map, even with a constant scale, stretches some distances and shortens others, and varies the scale from point to point. The choice of map projection, therefore, affects its size, shape, distance and direction. Different models of projection have been used to create cartographic propaganda

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

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Figure 03. Riegler, H. (1935) “Demilitarized Germany” in Heer, Flotte und Luftwaffe. Wehrpolitisches Taschenbuch.

by making small areas bigger and large areas bigger still (Monmonier, 1996). The Mercator Projection system has been the most popular since the sixteenth century because it makes bigger the regions around the poles and the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, while shrinking the ones around the Equator, since it is in the former regions where the world’s empires have had their center of power. Other methods of projection, like Arno Peters’, attack on the Mercator Projection as an example of the subjectivity of map projection. Finally, symbols are used in maps to complement map scale and projection by making visible the features, places, and other locational information represented on a map. Because map symbolization describes and differentiates features and places, “map symbols serve as a geographic code for storing and retrieving data in a two- dimensional geographic framework.”6 Map symbolization tells the map reader what is relevant and what is not. As a result, the selection of symbols can be done subjectively and with a propagandistic intent. (Monmonier, 1996)

The Media becomes the propaganda machine of the State. “Political persuasion often concerns territorial claims, nationalities, national pride, borders, strategic positions, conquests, attacks, troop movements, defenses, spheres of influence, regional inequality, etc. The goal of cartographic propaganda is to mold the map’s message by emphasizing supporting features while suppressing contradictory information. Successful cartographic propaganda is geared toward an audience.”7

State can be linked to the institutionalization of the production of maps (Wood, 2010). But, it is also arguable that the invention of the print was the reason why maps began to be massively produced in the first place. Since then, media outlets have multiplied and diversified to incredible extents. Mass communications allow people to be connected to events or other people across the world, even if its model of access and distribution still feels guided by the same mindset that produced the Mercator Projection. The media is probably, today, the last cartographer on Earth. Its different outlets are producing all sorts of maps: political, economic, social, historic, natural, climate, for tourism, etc. It would be naïve to assume that these cartographies have no other purpose but to inform. These maps comply with the conventions previously developed; these are usually simplified, flat, emotionally appealing drawings very easy to understand and assimilate, but with many layers of interpretation behind them (see cartograms on the U.S. election maps on Dennis Wood’s Rethinking the Power of Maps, pages 40-43).

Figure 04. Riegler, H. (1935) “With an insufficient military, Germany can be blockaded both by land and sea” in Heer, Flotte und Luftwaffe. Wehrpolitisches Taschenbuch.

Maybe it can be argued that the act of mapping is an act of propaganda in itself, and the media is right now its main provider. If maps helped to construct the concept of the State, then, even in an age when empires are less easy to identify, the question remains the same: who benefits from the underlying message of maps? Who is the golden Monarch riding his chariot over turbulent waters to claim his new possessions?

In 1942 Time Magazine produced a series of maps (Figure 06 & Cover) illustrating a series of possible scenarios that the Nazi Armed Forces could be planning to invade the continental territory of the United States. Each of the published maps used the same language of representation applied by earlier maps from Nazi Germany (Figures 03 & 04), thus, making them seem factual. The reality was that there is no proof that Germany was even considering those strategies, which means that those maps were a fictional creation from Time Magazine, a cartographic propaganda intending to win American supporters for the War Cause. Dennis Wood argues that the emergence of the

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smith’s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

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Figure 05. Time Magazine (April 01, 1946). Communist Contagion. New York City, Vol. XLVII, No. 13

Cartographies of Propaganda: mapping with a political agency By Fernando Blanco Notes 01. Garfield, S. (2013) On the Map. London: Profile Books, page 150. 02. Dugan Montebello, S. (2013) Maps as Propaganda in the Age of Exploration. Found at: http://www.nrm.org/2013/05/ maps-as-propaganda-in-the-age-of-exploration-by-stacey-duganmontebello/

Select Bibliography Barber, P. & Harper, T. (2010). Magnificent Maps: Power, Propaganda, and Art. London: The British Library .

03. Black, J. (1997). Maps and politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, page 277.

Black, J. (1997). Maps and politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

04. Speier, H. (Fall 1941). Magic Geography. Social Research: An International Quarterly 8 (3): page 326. 05. Boria, E. (2008). Geopolitical Maps: A Sketch History of a Neglected Trend in Cartography. Geopolitics, 13, page 283.

Boria, E. (2008). Geopolitical Maps: A Sketch History of a Neglected Trend in Cartography. Geopolitics, 13.

06. Monmonier, M. (1996). How to Lie with Maps. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, page 18. 07. Monmonier, M. (1996). How to Lie with Maps. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, page 87.

Dugan Montebello, S. (2013) Maps as Propaganda in the Age of Exploration. Found at: http://www.nrm.org/2013/05/mapsas-propaganda-in-the-age-of-exploration-by-stacey-duganmontebello/ Garfield, S. (2013) On the Map. London: Profile Books.

Image credits

Gutiérrez, D. (1562) Americae sive Quartae Orbis Partis Nova et Exactissima Descriptio. Rosenwald Collection, Library of Congress, no. 1303. Found at: http://www.loc.gov/item/map49000970/

Cover Figure. Time Magazine (1942). Found at: http://www. dailymail.co.uk/news/article2032699/What-Nazis-invadedAmerica-Maps-published-1942-Life-issue-detailed-plans-Hitlerinvasion-U-S.html

Monmonier, M. (1996). How to Lie with Maps. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

Figure 01. Gutiérrez, D. (1562) Americae sive Quartae Orbis Partis Nova et Exactissima Descriptio. Rosenwald Collection, Library of Congress, No. 1303. Found at: http://www.loc.gov/item/ map49000970/ Figure 02. Quin, E. (1830). The discovery of America A.D. 1492 in “An Historical Atlas; In a Series of Maps of the World as Known at Different Periods”, page 47, London: Seeley and Burnside. Found at: http://www.davidrumsey.com/blog/2012/3/28/timeline-maps. Figure 03. Riegler, H. (1935) “Demilitarized Germany” in Heer, Flotte und Luftwaffe. Wehrpolitisches Taschenbuch. Berlin: Verlag für vaterländische Literatur. Found at: http://geography.about.com/ gi/o. Figure 04. Riegler, H. (1935) “With an insufficient military, Germany can be blockaded both by land and sea” in Heer, Flotte und Luftwaffe. Wehrpolitisches Taschenbuch. Berlin: Verlag für vaterländische Literatur. Found at: http://geography.about.com/gi/o. Figure 05. Time Magazine (April 01, 1946). Communist Contagion. New York City, Vol. XLVII, No. 13. Found at: http://cartographiccatalog.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/propaganda-map.html.

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Figure 06. Time Magazine (1942). Found at: http://www.dailymail. co.uk/news/article-2032699/What- Nazis-invaded-America-Mapspublished-1942-Life-issue-detailed-plans-Hitler-invasion-U-S.html

Quin, E. (1830). The discovery of America A.D. 1492 in “An Historical Atlas; In a Series of Maps of the World as Known at Different Periods”, page 47, London: Seeley and Burnside. Found at: http://www.davidrumsey.com/blog/2012/3/28/timeline-maps. Riegler, H. (1935) Heer, Flotte und Luftwaffe. Wehrpolitisches Taschenbuch. Berlin: Verlag für vaterländische Literatur. Found at: http://geography.about.com/gi/o. Speier, H. (Fall 1941). Magic Geography. Social Research: An International Quarterly 8 (3): pages 310– 330. Time Magazine (April 01, 1946). Communist Contagion. New York City, Vol. XLVII, No. 13. Found at: http://cartographic-catalog. blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/propaganda-map.html. Tyner, Judith A. (1982) Persuasive Cartography. Journal of Geography 81: pages 140-44. Wood, D. (2010) Rethinking the Power of Maps. New York City: The Guilford Press.

The present essay was written for Douglas Spencer’s seminar MODELS, METHODS AND THEORIES

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Figure 06. Time Magazine (1942). Fictional Nazi military scenarios to invade continental U.S.

*Essays written by Fernando Blanco and Shruthi Padmanabhan for Tom Smithâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seminar MACHINING LANDSCAPES have been spread across the different chapters

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Figure 133 (top). Wooden poles used at Sacca di Goro to define ownership of underwater ground meant for exploitation of clams (vongole) and mussels (cozze) (picture taken during field trip to site)

FIGURES, NOTES & BIBLIOGRAPHY

TECTONIC INTERSECTIONS

FIGURES Cover

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 01

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 02 -06

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 07 Figure 08, 09, 10

Redrawn from Source: Journal of Sedimentary research

Figure 11

Redrawn from Source: Environmental and Economic Effects of Subsidence.

Figure 12

Sources: http://www.valsesiascuole.it/dadda/scienzenaturali/scienze_terra/subsidenza_delta_po.jpg

Figure 13 - 18

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 19- 27

Source: Google Earth

Figure 28 - 29

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 30 -31

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 32 - 33

Sources: Man-made deltas, Maselli, V. & Trincardi, and F.

Figure 34

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 34.a

Source: https://myportfolio.ucl.ac.uk/view/view.php?id=30517

Figure 34.b

Source: https://myportfolio.ucl.ac.uk/view/view.php?id=30517

Figure 35

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 35.a

Source: http://www.spain-in-a-campervan.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/mequinenzadam002.jpg

Figure 35.b

Source: http://www.dpz.es/turismoNuevo/img/espaciosbajoebro2.jpg

Figure 35.c

Source: http://www.ontheebro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/DSC_0171.jpg

Figure 36

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 36.a

Source: http://www.liberta.it/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/isola-serafini.jpg

Figure36.b

Source: Cartoteca IUAV, Venice

Figure 37

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 37.a

Source: http://www.cnr.tm.fr/media/37568/ban_2.jpg

Figure37.b

Source: http://photos.wikimapia.org/p/00/03/09/04/41_big.jpg

Figure 37.c

Source: http://www.planete-tp.com/en/local/cache-vignettes/L495xH193/24_cle719b68-8-76d38.jpg

Figure 38

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 39

Sources: Wikipedia

Figure 40

Source: Cartoteca IUAV, Venice

Figure 41

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 42

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan. Interpreted from source: presentation by Ing. Alessandro Bondesan

Figure 43 - 45

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 46 - 47

Sources: Distributary channels and their impact on sediment dispersal

Figure 48

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan. Interpreted from source: CIRCE GIS Lab, IUAV, Venice

Figure 49

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 50

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 51 - 55

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 56

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 57

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 58 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 61

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Sources: http://balboniado.blog.tiscali.it/?doing_wp_cron

Figure 62

Sources: Land Reclamation in the Po River Delta of Italy, David L. Wheeler

Figure 63

Sources: Stefano Piastra, Man-Waters Interactions in the Po River Delta

Figure 64 - 67

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 68 - 71

Sources: Physical Processes and Human Activities in the Evolution of the Po Delta, Italy, Carlo Cenini

Figure 72

Source: Land Reclamation in the Po River Delta of Italy, David L. Wheeler

Figure 73

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 74 - 75

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 76 - 79

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 80 - 81

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 82 - 83

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 84 - 92

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan

Figure 93 - 118

by: Fernando Blanco

Figure 119 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 134

by: Shruthi Padmanabhan and Fernando Blanco

Figure 135 - 140

by: Fernando Blanco

Back cover

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TECTONIC INTERSECTIONS

NOTES

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01.

Hutton, J. (2013) Reciprocal Landscapes: material portraits in New York City and elsewhere, in Journal of Landscape Architecture, 8:1, page 40.

02.

Tosi, Maria Chiara (2013). Toward an Atlas of the European Delta Landscape. Trento, Italy: List Lab, page 09.

03.

Syvitski, J.P.M., 2003. Sediment fluxes and rates of sedimentation. In: Middleton, G.V. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Netherlands, pp. 600– 606.

04.

Meckel et al. 2007 , Meckel TA, Ten Brink US, Williams SJ (2007) Sediment compaction rates and subsidence in deltaic plains: numerical constraints and stratigraphic influences. Basin Res 19:19–31

05.

Syvitski , James P. M. (2007) , Deltas at risk in Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science and Springer 2008, Page 5

06.

Irina Overeem and James P. M. Syvitski, (2009), Dynamics and Vulnerability of Delta Systems in LANDOCEAN INTERACTIONS IN THE COASTAL ZONE (LOICZ) Reports and Studies No. 35, Page 5

07.

Bond, G. et al. (2001).Persistent Solar Influence on North Atlantic Climate during the Holocene. Science 294, 2130–2136

08.

Vittorio Maselli & Fabio Trincardi, Man-made deltas IN Institute di Science Marine, ISMAR-CNR, Via Gobetti 101, Bologna, Italy. Page 2

09.

Vittorio Maselli & Fabio Trincardi, Man-made deltas IN Institute di Science Marine, ISMAR-CNR, Via Gobetti 101, Bologna, Italy. Page 6

10.

Vittorio Maselli & Fabio Trincardi, Man-made deltas IN Institute di Science Marine, ISMAR-CNR, Via Gobetti 101, Bologna, Italy. Page 6

11.

McManus, J. (2004). Deltaic responses to changes in river regimes. Marine Chemistry, 79, 155-170.

12.

Brommer, Marit (2007) , Geological processes in the Anthropocene: the Po River Delta, Po Delta Evolution, Page 01

13.

Po River, Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Po_(river)

14.

Syvitski J P.M , Kettner A J., Anna Correggiari b, Bruce W. Nelson c(2005) Distributary channels and their impact on sediment dispersal in Marine Geology 222–223 (2005) 75–94

15.

Dal Cin, R. (1983). I littorali del delta Po e alle foci dell’Adige e del Brenta: caratteri tessiturali e disperzione dei sedimenti, cause dell’arretramento e previsioni sull’evoluzione future. Boll. Soc. Geol. Ital. 102, Page 9.

16.

Parco Regionale Delta Po, Emilia-Romagna: http://www.parchideltapo.it/ taglio.del.po/E00.html

17.

Tosi, Maria Chiara (2013). Toward an Atlas of the European Delta Landscape. Trento, Italy: List Lab, page 04.

18.

Piastra, Stefano( 2010), Man-Waters Interactions in the Po River Delta in Land Reclamations: GeoHistorical Issues in a Global Perspective International Conference University of Bologna.

19.

Robert, Rene (2013) A glimpse on the mollusc industry in Europe in Aquaculture Europe

20.

Irina Overeem and James P. M. Syvitski, (2009), Dynamics and Vulnerability of Delta Systems in LANDOCEAN INTERACTIONS IN THE COASTAL ZONE (LOICZ) Reports and Studies No. 35, Page 1

21.

McHarg, Ian L (1992) , Design with Nature : Sea and Survival , Page 17

TECTONIC INTERSECTIONS

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY Deltas at risk JAMES P. M. SYVITSKY Sustain Sci, DOI 10.1007/s11625-008-0043-3

01.

Distributary channels and their impact on sediment dispersal JAMES P.M. SYVITSKI, ALBERT J. KETTNER, ANNA CORREGGIARI, BRUCE W. NELSON Marine Geology 222–223 (2005) 75–94

02.

Dynamics and Vulnerability of Delta Systems IRINA OVEREEM AND JAMES P. M. SYVITSKI

03.

Environmental and Economic Effects of Subsidence. V.F. VETS, C.K. VAUGHAN, AND R.C. HARDING Geothermal subsidence research management program

04.

Geology, Geography, and Humans Battle for Dominance over the Delivery of Fluvial Sediment to the Coastal Ocean. JAMES P. M. SYVITSKI AND JOHN D. MILLIMAN

05.

I littorali del delta Po e alle foci dell’Adige e del Brenta: caratteri tessiturali e disperzione dei sedimenti, cause dell’arretramento e previsioni sull’evoluzione future. R. DAL CIN Boll. Soc. Geol. Ital., 1983, 102, pages 9-56

06.

Land Reclamations: Geo-Historical Issues in a Global Perspective International Conference University of Bologna (2010) Reviews in Coastal Engineering, Volume 2

07.

Land Reclamation in the Po River Delta of Italy David L. Wheeler LMaanrdia E Ccohniaoram Ticoss, I, V Doel.l t4a1, L aNnod. 4sc (aNpoev .2, 1109065), pages 376-382

08.

Man-made deltas. Maselli, V. & Trincardi, F. Sci. Rep. 3, 1926; DOI: 10.1038/srep01926 (2013).

09.

Magnitude and causes of long-term subsidence of the Po Plain and Venetian region E. CARMINATI, C. DOGLIONI AND D. SCROCCA, 04Carminati.qxd 31/01/2005 11:45, page 21

10.

Man-Waters Interactions in the Po River Delta Stefano Piastra

11.

Mechanics of flow and sediment transport in delta Distributary channels. JONATHAN M. NELSON ,PAUL J. KINZEL, MUNG DINH THANH, DUONG DUC TOAN, YASUYUKI SHIMIZU, RICHARD R. MCDONALD

12.

Physical Processes and Human Activities in the Evolution of the Po Delta, Italy CARLO CENCINI Journal of Coastal Research, Vol. 14, No. 3 (summer, 1998), pages 774-793

13.

Reciprocal Landscapes: material portraits in New York City and elsewhere JANE HUTTON Journal of Landscape Architecture, 2013, 8:1, pages 40-47

14.

Reviews in Coastal Engineering: Po Delta Italy pages 219 – 222

15.

REGIONAL REPORT: Inter-regional basin of the Po River, Italy Marco Calmistro,

16.

Terminal distributary channels and delta front architecture of river-dominated Delta systems, CORNEL OLARIU* AND JANOK P. BHATTACHARYA** Journal of Sedimentary Research, 2006, v. 76, 212–233

17.

Toward an Atlas of the European Delta Landscape Maria Chiara Tosi,

18.

The Role of Sediment in Coastal Management: Beneficial Reuse and Morphological Restoration. GIOVANNI CECCONI.

19.

169

Figure 134 (top). Rosolina Mare, traditional breakwater structure also used for sediment accumulation (picture taken during field trip to site)

APPENDIX

figures, notes & bibliography

DELTA URBE. drawings and physical model for the aa projects review exhibition

Figure 135 (top). Phases 01 and 02 of a first design proposal for the Po Delta 172

Figure 136 (left). Physical model of the subsidence bowl next to Ariano nel Polesine flooding cluster

figures, notes & bibliography

DELTA URBE. drawings and physical model for the aa projects review exhibition

Figure 137 (top). Phases 03 and 04 of a first design proposal for the Po Delta Figure 138 (right). Physical model of the subsidence bowl next to Ariano nel Polesine flooding cluster

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TECTONIC INTERSECTIONS WORKSHOP. ebro delta geomorphology panel

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Figure 139 (top). Geomorphology panel of the Ebro Delta showing the erosive effect of longshore drift

TECTONIC INTERSECTIONS WORKSHOP. ebro delta social formations panel

Figure 140 (top). Social Formations panel of the Ebro Delta showing slopes, irrigation and drainage canals and farmlands Backcover. Po di Maistra river mouth (picture taken during field trip to site)

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