The Po River Delta Geography & Climate

The Delta occupies the south-eastern corner of the Veneto, in the province of Rovigo, in the low country known as the Polesine between the Po and the Adige.

The river divides here into several branches -- the Po di Goro, di Gnocca, di Maistra, di Pila, di Tolle and di Levante -- which between them enclose a fan of islands, reedbeds and shallow brackish lagoons called sacche. The largest and most important is the Sacca degli Scardovari.

Almost all of it is flat to the point of being featureless, and a great deal of it lies below sea level -- kept dry by an unbroken system of embankments, drainage channels and pumping stations without which most of the province would flood.

The delta is still advancing into the Adriatic with the sediment the Po carries, while the land behind it subsides. Between them, the coastline here changes measurably within a human lifetime.

Toward the sea, long sandbars and dune systems enclose the lagoons; behind them are pine woods, reclaimed farmland, rice fields and the villages strung along the embankments.

Summers (June-August) are hot and very humid, frequently above thirty degrees, with little shade anywhere and the sea breeze the only relief near the coast.

Winters (December-February) are cold and damp, with hard frosts and some of the densest fog in Italy -- the Po valley's characteristic winter condition, and thick enough here to close roads.

Spring and autumn are the best seasons: mild, clear, and the times of bird migration.

Rainfall is moderate and spread through the year, heaviest in autumn. Mosquitoes are unavoidable from May to September away from the open coast, and should be planned for rather than hoped against.