The Venice Police investigate the origin of the phosphorescent green liquid which appeared on Sunday in the city’s Grand Canal, from the famous Rialto bridge to the San Marcos basin.
The episode took place minutes before the start of the Vogalongathe non-competitive regatta that began in 1974 as a complaint against the movement of the waves and which began at 09:00 local time on the Giudecca Canal, with 1,500 rowing boats and 8,000 participants.
No one has claimed authorship. According to the first indications, the green liquid would be a “tracer”, a liquid that is used when a water leak occurs to follow its trajectory. Although it could be a sign of protest organized by climate activists.
“The prefect has called an urgent meeting with the police to investigate the origin of the liquid,” tweeted the president of the Veneto region, Luca Zaia. The Italian fire service said it was helping the regional environmental protection agency to take samples for analysis.
The image of the gondolas plying the green waters of the canals have alerted passers-by. It’s not the first time that the Grand Canal is dyed green. In 1968, the Argentine artist Nicolás García Uriburu dyed the waters green with a fluorescent dye during the 34th Venice Biennale, in an act of ecological awareness.
