Alto Garda Wastewater Plant: Funding, Legal Hurdles, and Construction Plans

A “ghost” minutes and an unfinished agreement have long hindered the construction of the wastewater treatment plant in Alto Garda. The plant, with a capacity equivalent to 18,000 inhabitants, will be located in a section of an abandoned tunnel of the former Gardesana road. However, to begin work, the transfer of the former state road to the Municipality, as outlined in an unsigned convention by Anas, is necessary.

Meanwhile, the funds: a total of 5 billion euros allocated five years ago through the three-year Environmental Plan, remain unused. To resolve the matter and initiate construction within the territory of the Municipality of Tremosine, the Azienda speciale Garda Uno intends to proceed with urgent occupation of the area.

Environmental Impact and Collection Works

The positive effects of investments made for the ecological protection of Lake Garda are clearly felt on the Brescia Riviera of the lake. In recent seasons, bans on swimming have drastically decreased, resulting in favorable impacts on the lake’s tourist image.

The collection system, with pipelines spanning 220 kilometers, gathers wastewater from 27 municipalities—15 in Brescia and 12 in Verona. The Peschiera wastewater treatment plant treats the wastewater through five lines for liquids, with a capacity of 330,000 inhabitants-equivalent, and two lines for sludge.

The company Garda Uno, which manages the treatment plant and the Brescia facility, has ongoing investments to further expand the plant’s capacity. For years, the completion of the project related to Alto Garda, specifically for the municipalities of Tremosine and Limone, has also been under consideration.

Project for Alto Garda and the Former State Road Segment

Here, a small autonomous treatment plant is planned, occupying approximately 10,000 square meters. Due to limited space in this area, there is also the idea of utilizing a section of the abandoned Gardesana state road.

The identified section is located in the municipality of Tremosine, from the tunnel to the Enel substation, between kilometer 97 and 97.780. The area has been evaluated and deemed suitable for the project; the intervention has no environmental impact as it is located within a tunnel.

Thus, the procedure was initiated to transfer 780 meters of road no longer used by Anas to the Municipality of Tremosine. According to the road code — explains Tremosine’s mayor Ardigò — a dismissal agreement was prepared, which I signed. However, I have not received any communication of acceptance nor the signed document from Anas.

“The signature from Anas in Milan is missing,” confirms engineer Giampietro Avanzi of the Azienda consorzio Garda Uno. Despite efforts, we do not know what has happened to the documentation. What is certain is that Anas in Rome, at the end of November 1999, examined the dismissal minutes and found them approvable. Since then, no trace has been found.

Meanwhile, the company has installed the main collectors north and south, which will serve Tremosine and Limone. The works are well advanced, with only one-third remaining to be completed. It is therefore necessary to proceed with the tendering and commissioning of the 18,000 inhabitants-equivalent capacity treatment plant, planned inside the tunnel.

There are two functional lots: one worth 5 billion euros, to be executed with funds already available for years; and a second worth 2 billion euros, currently being financed by the regional authorities (only the decree is missing).

“We can no longer wait,” declares Guido Maruelli, president of the Azienda speciale consorzio Garda Uno, which includes the lakeside municipalities of Brescia. “We definitely do not want to lose the first funding available for years. We waited a long time, and now that the second €2 billion fund is arriving, enabling us to complete the plant, we intend to proceed.”

If it is not possible to resolve the dismission process with the transfer of the unused tunnel segment to Tremosine, I am determined to proceed with urgent occupation. As for the treatment plant, we will follow the procedure for tendering and commissioning.