The European Commission said Tuesday it will bring Italy before the European Court of Justice (ECJ) over the ongoing trash crisis in Naples and the Campania region.
The decision came after Italy received repeated warnings over violating the EU's Waste Framework Directive, with the situation in Campania risking the spread of disease and pollution of air, water and land.
''The piles of uncollected rubbish in the streets of Campania graphically illustrate the threat to the environment and human health that results when waste management is inadequate,'' said EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas.
Campania has suffered numerous trash emergencies in recent years after running out of places to put its waste, and Naples is still struggling to cope with a backlog of rubbish piling up on its streets after a collapse in the collection system in January.
On Monday an estimated 30,000 tonnes of waste still lined the region's streets, with around 1,400 tonnes in Naples alone.
The army are regularly drafted in to dig into the mountains of rubbish, while containers of trash are taken on trains out of the region as far as Germany.
Appointed in January, special waste emergency commissioner Gianni Di Gennaro has also reopened old dumps in the region and plans to bring new incinerators on line.
But the EC said Tuesday that steps taken by the outgoing government to resolve the crisis were not satisfactory.
''The measures being taken are inadequate to address Campania's waste problems in the long term and prevent a repeat of the unacceptable events seen over the past year,'' it said.
''Campania is today still far from establishing an effective management system that addresses the collection, treatment and disposal of waste.
''Furthermore, the Italian authorities have been unable to give a clear timetable for the completion and entry into operation of the sorting plants, landfills, incinerators and other infrastrucutre needed to resolve the region's waste problems''.
The EC added that it will also send Italy a first written warning about its failure to adopt a regional waste management plan in Lazio, the region around Rome.
Lazio is the only region that has no plan in effect, contravening an ECJ ruling in June 2007.
If Italy does not correct the infringement after a second written warning, the ECJ has the power to impose hefty fines.
''Italy needs to give priority to putting in place effective waste management plans in Campania and Lazio as well as the collection and treatment infrastructure needed to implement them properly,'' Dimas said.
