Decision time in Rome rubbish row

 ROME-- A "summit" was being held Monday to tackle Rome’s mushrooming refuse crisis, as residents of proposed landfill sites again made their displeasure heard.

 Officials from across the region have been summoned to the Ministry for the Environment by Prime Minister Monti’s new waste disposal commissioner Goffredo Sottile, as the capital tries desperately to avoid a catastrophe like the one which has blighted the streets of Naples in recent years.

 The problem is the result of the decision that Rome’s principal landfill, Malagrotta, must close within 26 days unless a deferral is granted. Even if the deferral is forthcoming, the dump has been at full capacity for years and a replacement is needed urgently. However, discussions concerning the location of the new site are at an impasse, with each proposal stymied by vocal protests from residents.

 Joining Sottile at the meeting will be Minister for the Environment Corrado Clini, but it is unclear whether regional President Renata Polverini, provincial President Nicola Zingaretti or city mayor Giorgio Alemanno will be in attendance. Polverini has already indicated that she will be sending representatives in her place, with Zingaretti and Alemanno’s schedules still unclear.

 Corrado Clini had sharp words for the absent officials. “Everyone is responsible for their actions,” he said. “What I know for certain is that Sottile has all the resources and the power to decide.” That is to say, with or without the approval of the missing parties.

 The unenthusiastic response to Sottile’s summit can be read as a sign of the high tensions and unabashed obstructionism which have marked the negotiations. Everyone agrees that a site must be found immediately to prevent a waste management crisis, but no-one wants the new landfill on their territory, and concession does not seem to be an option, leaving regional officials at loggerheads. The last prefect of Rome, Giuseppe Pecoraro, was forced to resign after voicing support for a new landfill at Corcolle, in Tivoli.

 The Corcolle plans were scrapped after the academic community expressed outrage at constructing a rubbish dump next to Hadrian’s Villa. Another proposed location is Aurelia, to the west of the city, where residents today reacted by erecting a large banner reading: “No more rubbish dumps in the Valle Galeria.”

 The most likely choice as the summit convenes today is Pian dell’Olmo, 20km north of Rome in the comune of Riano. Local activists have already announced their intention to mobilise if this should come to pass. Today, 50 local people chained themselves at Pian dell’Olmo as a symbolic protest. The deputy mayor of the town, Italo Arcuri, told reporters, “If the Sottile commission elects Pian dell’Olmo as an alternative site to Malagrotta, it would be a misunderstanding of the Constitution, which protects and guarantees the health of citizens.” The deputy mayor also had words of warning for the waste management commissioner, “Sottile knows that here at Riano we are ready for the barricades.”

 jp-rg