Lonato Abandons Landfill Plan for Site Cleanup Near Desenzano
The project to establish a landfill at the Traversino locality of Lonato has been shelved, and instead, an alternative plan is being considered that involves site remediation without the installation of waste disposal facilities.
This news could represent a first victory for those, including neighboring municipalities and various anti-landfill committees, who had opposed the project submitted last year.
The news spread in recent days when a new project was presented to the municipalities of Castiglione, Solferino, Lonato, and Desenzano, this time focusing solely on the cleanup of the Traversino site.
Site Characteristics and Historical Background
As many will remember, the area affected by this project is located in a strategic zone bordering both the territory of Desenzano and those of Solferino and Castiglione, falling under the jurisdiction of Lonato.
This area, owned by a Brescia-based company, had previously been excavated for several thousand cubic meters of gravel and also used illegally for waste dumping.
Following multiple reports from the Municipality of Lonato, a company that had reached an agreement with the property owner decided to initiate a cleanup project. The project itself justified that, to fund it, it would be necessary to create space for the storage of non-toxic hazardous special waste.
Opposition and Future Decisions
The creation of what was turning into a genuine landfill was opposed by the Lonato committee and neighboring municipalities such as Castiglione and Solferino.
After the fall of the Lonato administration, the proponents themselves had decided to shelve the project.
At this point, the landowners responsible for the cleanup have decided, according to the new project, to proceed solely with the site remediation, using a process that would also bypass the need for a Environmental Impact Assessment (VIA).
The entities that opposed the previous project have decided, through their lawyers, not to stay on the sidelines and have formally requested to be consulted again for a close and direct review of the new plan.
The registered letters have been sent in recent days by both the Municipality of Castiglione and Solferino.
Germano Bignotti