Mystery Solved, After Venice Italy Water Turns Green

By Cort Johnson

May 31, 2023

Gondola on Grand Canal in Venice, Italy
Photo: Getty Images

Officials in Italy said they have solved the mystery of what turned the waterways in the historic Venice Canal a bright shade of green.

Venice residents reported on Sunday that the waters in the canal stretching to the Rialto Bridgehad had transformed to a fluorescent green color, prompting a police investigation.

Environmental authorities conducted chemical and biological tests on the water and discovered the bright green color was the result of the presence of fluorescein, a non-toxic substance used to test wastewater networks, according to a press release by the Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Protection of Veneto.

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