Eruption Over Pompeii
- Posted by: Alexandra Marvar
- on July 28, 2008 at 1:07 am
Sounds like old news, we know, but two centuries after it was fossilized in a sheath of volcanic ash and pumice from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, the Italian government has declared a state of emergency in the city of Pompeii. A new environmental hazard looms: tourists.
Italy acknowledged that allowing 2.6 million tourists a year to run rampant through this priceless archaeological site, chipping at frescoes and sneezing ancient ash on things, is not acknowledging its fragility, and beyond that, doing irreparable damage.
Presumably, this declaration of emergency means some money will be put into Pompeii, though the privatization of the UNESCO World Heritage site remains controversial.
Photo from Pompeii via tomgidwitz.com
