In the late 1970s, many wooden barges used to transport goods between Venice and Treviso,  known as "burci," were abandoned along the banks of a bend in the Sile River. Exposed to the weather and the river's flowing water, the boats gradually sunk and start rotting. Many of them can still be seen in the water at the Cimitero dei Burci, or Cemetery of the Burci.

Now they are partially embedded in the muddy riverbed, slowly being colonized by plants and aquatic wildlife. River birds use them as a nest, while fish, and amphibia use them as a shelter from predators.