Italy has moved closer to prosecution in the European Court of Justice after it failed to convince the European Commission it had put in place the proper health and environmental safeguards at a former industrial area in Cengio that is being reclaimed.
The Commission issued a reasoned opinion, the second stage of possible prosecution, after Italy failed to provide satisfactory assurances to a letter of formal notice issued in October 2009.
The move was recommended by environment commissioner Janez Potočnik and Italy now has two months to respond.
The Commission says the reclamation area included a landfill of contaminated soil and hazardous waste and should have had an environmental impact assessment carried out before consent was given for development.
But the authorities in Italy approved the area's rehabilitation without such an assessment.
"As this site is not recognised as a landfill or as a rehabilitated landfill, this may also mean that the strict requirements of directive 1999/31/EC on landfill waste (the landfill directive) for the protection of environment and human health have not been followed," said the Commission.
"Landfills containing hazardous waste can be extremely harmful for the environment and public health, as poisonous chemicals can leach into local groundwater. They therefore need to be carefully built, managed and monitored before and after closure, in compliance with the Landfill Directive."
