Italy

Starting from the 1950s Italy underwent a process of accelerated economic growth in terms of both production and consumption that rapidly made it one of the world’s most developed countries. However, this process also caused a sharp decline in environmental quality. The expansion of heavy industry (chemicals, steel, cement, refineries, paper mills) brought extensive pollution. Even the numerous small and medium size factories — perhaps the real secret of the Italian “economic miracle” — spread across northern and central regions, are responsible for serious pollution due to their concentration in relatively small territories. 14 areas have been classified as exposed to the risk of an “environmental crisis”, and 10 more are considered as critical due the concentration of high impact industrial activities (Ministero dell’Ambiente 1997, XVII).