TRIESTE There are well over 16 thousand buildings in Friuli Venezia Giulia with Eternit roofs or coverings. This is the figure that emerges from the mapping that the Region is carrying out, also photographing the territory with drones, an operation that is unique in Italy and began in 2019.
For the moment, aerial images of 30 municipal areas have been collected, representing an area where 62% of the population resides. Having photographic evidence allows us to know where the critical situations are, i.e. where the asbestos has degraded and poses a concrete risk to health (this concerns approximately 10% of the roofs detected), allowing the Municipalities to intervene to force citizens to proceed with the removal, first with an information letter and then with an order. Based on these figures, the projection is that in Friuli Venezia Giulia there are a total of over 27 thousand points of varying size with roofs containing asbestos, from the chicken coop to the shed to entire port areas.
Actions
To encourage the reclamation of the territory, the Region has allocated a total of 19 million euros from 2019 to today in favor of Municipalities, private individuals and businesses and has activated photographic mapping of the territory. In particular, 2.8 million have been put in place for the three-year period 2024-2026 for private homes only. But the removals are happening at a rapid pace and have undergone a strong acceleration in the last year also due to the extreme climatic phenomena that have hit Friuli Venezia Giulia, such as last summer’s hailstorm, which damaged many of these roofs. The Region therefore estimates that in a short time it will be possible to reach a situation in which the number of asbestos roofs will be drastically reduced, reaching just a few thousand. A notable result in the national panorama, given that “other Regions do not have a register” of asbestos roofing and therefore do not have figures that describe the size of the problem nor “contribution lines comparable to those implemented by us”, underlines Flavio Gabrielcig , director of the Central Directorate for Environmental Protection. This is a topic that “the Region has addressed with determination and without sparing resources”, specifies the regional councilor for the Environment, Fabio Scoccimarro, as it has “direct effects on both the environment and the health of citizens”.
The situation
«In the last four years, 15 thousand removal operations have been carried out», explains Gabrielcig, a notable result especially for the fact that there is «no obligation for citizens to remove Eternit roofing if they are in a good state of conservation » as it is only dangerous to health when it degrades. However, it is a “fragile” material and is easily damaged even by “hailstorms and storms”, continues Gabrielcig. A strong acceleration in the pace of removal of Eternit roofing has been seen in the last year, probably caused by the extreme climatic events of last summer, and it clearly emerges when looking at the financing applications received by companies from Gabrielcig offices: « In February, 530 requests arrived, more than double those that were normally submitted. Historically we gave contributions for around 2 million euros, this year we will have to find resources for 5 million euros”, specifies the regional director.
The process
Yesterday the procedure to be followed was presented so that private properties, especially houses and condominiums, can access financing. An essential criterion for receiving contributions is that these properties are registered in the Regional Asbestos Archive. Therefore, if the citizen does not live in one of the 30 municipalities already mapped, he must proceed to communicate to Arpa the presence of asbestos in a “compact matrix” (i.e. it is intact and not dangerous for health) or inform the competent health authority if the asbestos it is free or in a «friable matrix».
The contribution granted by the Region is 50% of the incurred and eligible expenditure (which includes not only removal, transport and disposal operations, but also the costs incurred for laboratory analyses) without a reimbursement ceiling. Applications are submitted online from January 1st to July 31st of each year, and can be submitted by the professional in charge of the practice with the delegation of the citizen owner or tenant. From 2019 to 2023 there were 3,265 financing applications for this class of buildings.
Tags: Asbestos risk thousand buildings Friuli Venezia Giulia
