Genova. Of the 23 points of mare championships along the coasts of the Liguria by the volunteers of Legambiente, 11 were found to be heavily polluted or polluted.
These, in summary, are the data released this morning by Green Schooner of Legambiente during the press conference held in Genoa.
The Green Schooner Survey at Sea
23 points in total, distributed along the provinces of Imperia, Savona, Genoa and La Spezia, 10 samples taken at the mouth of rivers and canals, 13 samples taken at sea. Of the 11 samples were found to be outside the legal limits of the microbiological analyzes carried out by laboratories in the area, 6 were assigned the rating of polluted, and 5 that of highly polluted, as established by Legambiente for samples that more than double the regulatory limits.
“The monitoring data of Goletta Verde in Liguria once again highlights the difficulties of our country regarding water purification – declares Federica Barbera, Spokesperson for Goletta Verde – we are concerned about the sampling done in Monterosso al Mare and that it was found to be heavily polluted, and we hope that a territory as virtuous as that of the Cinque Terre, works to find the causes of this result and implements the necessary interventions. Let’s not forget that there are 4 infringement procedures that weigh on Italy for the non-compliance with the Waste Water Directive; the last one is still in the investigation phase, the first three have already resulted in a conviction and in particular the first, dating back to 2004, has reached the point of a financial penalty. From an economic point of view, our country, Italy has already paid fines of over 142 million euros.”
Polluted sea, problem at the mouths of the rivers in Liguria
“As has been happening for years now, the results of sampling at the mouths of Ligurian rivers highlight constant critical issues in the water purification system – he declares Stefano Bigliazzi, President of Legambiente Liguria – the problem must be solved upstream: making the purification system more efficient to ensure that these critical issues are resolved. We also need to better signal, with specific posters, the ban on bathing in the river mouths, because even during our sampling we saw many citizens bathing in waters that should be forbidden to bathing, and this is a risk for people’s health”.
During its stop in Liguria, Goletta Verde also organized a blitz in front of the island of Palmaria, displaying the banner “Hands off Palmaria” during navigation. Enough concrete, enough speculation. The island of Palmaria needs a model that puts its environmental, historical and cultural vocations at the center.”
The detail of the Goletta Verde analysis
Goletta Verde’s sampling is not intended to replace official data on bathing suitability but rather complements the work carried out by the competent authorities. If, in fact, the Arpa data are the only ones that determine the bathing suitability of a stretch of coast following repeated analyzes in the summer period, the Goletta Verde analyzes instead have another objective which is to identify the critical issues due to poor or absent wastewater purification in specific points, such as mouths, canals and waterways, the main vehicles with which this type of pollution reaches the sea.
Samplings carried out from 17 to 19 June 2024
In the province of Imperia there are 6 sampling points. The sample taken at the mouth of the Santa Caterina torrent in the municipality of Santo Stefano al Mare was found to be heavily polluted. Polluted were those taken in Ventimiglia at the mouth of the Roja river and in Sanremo the beach facing the San Romolo torrent. Within the limits were the samples taken at sea, at the mouth of the Nervia torrent, at Arma di Taggia the mouth of the Argentina torrent and at Diano Marina the mouth of the San Pietro torrent.
5 samples were taken in the province of Savona: out of limits were the points at the mouth of the Maremola torrent, in Pietra Ligure, which was found to be heavily polluted, the sample taken at the mouth of the Centa river in Albenga and the one at the mouth of the Pora river in Finale Ligure were both found to be polluted. Within limits were the sample taken at sea, at the mouth of the canal on the Diaz 161 seafront in Ceriale and the one at the mouth of the Quiliano torrent, also in Finale Ligure.
In Genoa and its province, 6 samples were taken at sea
In the province of Genoa, 6 samples were taken, of which the one at the mouth of the Nervi torrent, which was found to be polluted, was outside the limits, while the points at sea near Rio San Siro in Santa Margherita Ligure and at the mouth of the Entella torrent, in Lavagna, were heavily polluted. Within the limits were the sampling at the Sbolgi pier in Bogliasco, the one at sea near the Recco torrent, in Recco, and also at sea near the Petronio torrent, in Riva Trigoso.
Finally, there are 6 points collected in the province of La Spezia. The sample taken from the canal that passes under Piazza Garibaldi in Monterosso a Mare, which flows into the sea, was heavily polluted, while the sample taken from the sea, near the drain under the lookout in Manarola, Riomaggiore, was found to be polluted. Within the limits, the samples taken in the sea, at the mouth of the canal under the steps on the Venere Azzura beach in Lerici, the sea at the height of the historic triangle of Marinella di Sarzana, at the Fiumaretta beach in Ameglia and the sample taken at the mouth of the Rio Corniglia in Vernazza.
The VERO project in collaboration with the Iit
At the end of the press conference, Claudio Semini, from the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) – presented VERO (Vacuum-cleaner Equipped RObot), a system that integrates robotics and artificial intelligence to support humans in waste removal. This robotic platform has the role of demonstrating how the integration of these technologies can allow to expand the range of tools to support the selective recovery of polluting and difficult to access waste such as cigarette butts abandoned on the ground. The project is part of the activities planned by the RAISE innovation ecosystem, and was carried out by the Dynamic Legged Systems (DLS) research unit coordinated by Claudio Semini.
