Warning of ecological disaster as oil spill reaches Po river
(24 Feb 2010) SHOTLIST
San Rocco
1. Wide of Lambro river
2. Pull out of river pollution
3. Close up of river pollution
4. SOUNDBITE: (Italian) No Name Given, local resident, Vox Pop:
I am sorry, I found two birds near my house, just one kilometre away, completely covered with that petrol. I tried to help them, but there was nothing to do, as my neighbour told me they were destined to die, poor animals. Who knows how many in such conditions there are along the river banks.
5. Various of river pollution
Villasanta
6. Pan right of Lombarda Petroli factory
7. Wide of fireman''s truck passing by factory
8. Mid of Lombarda Petroli entrance
9. Wide of Arpa inspectors (Regional Institute for environmental protection) inside Lombarda Petroli seen through gates
STORYLINE
An oil spill that began at a small river in northern Italy reached the Po River on Wednesday, with officials warning of an ecological disaster as they scrambled to contain the sludge before it contaminated Italy''s longest and most important river.
Milan regional officials said the cause was certainly sabotage at a former refinery turned oil depot, since the cisterns were opened and the oil allowed to flow unimpeded into the Lambro River near Monza.
The cisterns were opened by someone who was familiar with the plant and knew how to operate them, said a spokeswoman for the Milan provincial government.
There were varying accounts of the amount of oil released.
Officials now believe 2.5 (m) million litres (0.66 (m) million gallons) had poured out, down from initial estimates of 10 (m) million litres but significantly more than the 600,000 litres reported by the ANSA news agency and environmental groups.
Environmentalists warned that several water and bird species were at risk from the spill, since the area is rich in bird and other wildlife.
But even after the spill is cleaned up the impact will last as the Po river valley is the most important agricultural region in Italy, and the Po is used extensively for irrigation, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature said.
The spill began on Tuesday and spread south down the Lambro to Piacenza and Cremona overnight, despite efforts to contain it.
By Wednesday, it had reached the Po, which crosses the country from Piedmont in the west, across Turin and Ferrara before emptying into
the Adriatic sea.
The 130 kilometre (80 mile) Lambro, a tributary to the Po that means clear in Latin, had been polluted by years of industrial runoff well before the spill.
But Damiano di Simine, regional president of the Legambiente environmental group, said the slick had caused even more damage to
a tributary that had just recently shown signs of recovery, with fish returning.
Several oil-covered ducks have already been plucked from the river and taken for treatment at a regional animal shelter.
The WWF said most at risk were fish, wild ducks and herons, who are beginning to nest along the Po.
The Lombard regional president, Roberto Formigoni, said those responsible would be prosecuted and punished severely for what his
office called an ecological disaster.
While no arrests have been made, Italian news reports have noted that the Lombarda Petroli company, which owns the depot, had laid off several
workers in recent months as it downsized. There was no answer at the company on Wednesday.
Di Simine said that the company had in the past year managed to get off a list of at-risk industrial plants, which would have required it to keep up safety standards and an emergency contingency plan to deal with a spill.
A spokesman for the Milan provincial government said the plant had passed all recent safety inspections and the spill was not the result of a leak but of sabotage.
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