The European Commission on Tuesday criticized Italy for its handling of the Naples waste crisis, saying it was ready to take legal steps against Italy including fines, Italian News Agency ANSA said on Tuesday.
In a speech to the European Parliament, European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said "the continual violations" of European environmental norms in Campania, the region around Naples, "must stop."
"The commission will continue to exert pressure on the Italian government to resolve the crisis and is ready to carry forward its legal proceedings against Italy," Dimas said.
Dimas recalled that Italy has been repeatedly convicted by the European Court of Justice for breaking health and environmental norms.
He voiced "profound concern" over the mounds of rubbish piled in the streets of Naples and Campania, with their "disastrous implications for the health of local residents."
Dimas said "speculation" about the role of organized crime in waste management "should not be used as a pretext to hide the fact that the most direct cause of the waste crisis seems to be a lack of political will and action to adopt the measures needed to solve the problem."
The commissioner said the four-month plan unveiled by Premier Romano Prodi on Jan. 8 should be implemented "immediately."
The government's plan has already hit some bumps with the refusal of many Italian regions to take Campania's waste and health concerns keeping school children at home.
There have also been continued protests at dumps earmarked to take the rubbish.
The army is digging into the mountains of waste littering the region's streets while containers of rubbish are leaving Campania by road and sea.
Source:Xinhua
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