Landslides and floods, many of which are caused by heavy rain and the erosion of levees, are largely natural phenomenon that pose increased risk for many areas in Italy. According to the latest report by Italy’s environmental agency, Legambiente, approximately 70 percent of the Italian peninsula is at risk for landslides and other such natural disasters.
The report notes that 5,581 municipalities in the regions of Calabria, Umbria, Val d’Aosta, Marche, Sicily and Tuscany are at the highest risk of landslides and floods. Moreover, approximately 90 percent of the high-risk areas in Sicily and Tuscany are scattered with residential and industrial buildings.
Regarding public and private trans-portation, the report affirmed that Italy continues to ‘rely heavily on private motorized transport,’ compared to its European counterparts. It revealed that 72 percent of cargo in 2008 was transported along highways; only 18.3 percent was transported by ship; and just 9.8 percent by train.
Italy is also lagging behind in recycling. According to the Legambiente, ‘recycling is peaking in Trentino Alto Adige (53.4 percent), Veneto (51.4 percent), Piedmont (44.8 percent) and Lombardy (44.5 percent) and is languishing in the south, particularly in Molise (4.8 percent) and Sicily (6.1 percent).’
