What Is the Human-Environment Interaction in Italy?

The human-environment interaction in Italy, or the way that people have used or modified the land, is evident in the ancient Roman aqueducts and in Venice. In order to build Venice, the water had to be drained for the foundations to be built, modifying the environment.

Although humans have interacted with the environment at the Venetian Lagoon by building a city in the water, the city continues to sink into the sea. As a result, Italians want to implement a project adding a series of mobile floodgates in the lagoon to control the rise of water in the city. However, this interaction with the environment has possible environmental impacts such as modifying normal water currents and destroying native wildlife.

The human-environment interaction in Italy dates back to earlier civilizations including the ancient Romans, who depended on rivers for water. In order to get water to isolated locations, the Romans modified the environment by building long aqueducts. There were at least 11 aqueducts originally built to carry water as far as 60 miles. Early settlers in Rome depended on the salt flats located in the area for sodium. They used the Mediterranean Sea as a way to obtain food as well as ship materials for trading.