Hera, cleaning up worth 20 million – BBC

VIALE BERTI PICHAT

Hera, cleaning up worth 20 million

the project Ok, end of the work in 2018. Gabellini:
“in the basement will be inserted some bearings
to prevent the passage of polluting fluids”

BOLOGNA – “the situation is out of control and we are not in the Land of Fires.” In November of 2014 the mayor Virginio Merola felt obliged to reassure the city with words that everyone immediately, took for good. The night before a service of Report , on Rai 3, had rekindled the spotlight on the pollution of land on which stands the gigantic citadel of Hera in Viale Berti Pichat.

A familiar story, but partly forgotten. “It is not a new fact that the area is contaminated,” he hastened to say in a statement. “The pollution of the subsoil – added the multi-utility – mainly dates back to the coking coal processing carried out by the end of the 1800s to the ’60s.” They flocked controversy and alarms, together with the reassurance of Hera ( “the area is in accordance with and constantly monitored”). And in the prosecution is still an investigation that sees investigated for environmental crimes the president of the multi-utility Tomaso Tommasi di Vignano.

Now, a year and a half from the Report service, the reclamation of the land comes a major turning point . The Conference of the contaminated sites services – made up of representatives of the City, for Harp and USL – approved the new reclamation project operational area, supported by more accurate risk analysis than in the past. The record dates back to last April 4. The conference was made official on completion of work: December 2018 (with some trains to June 2019). total estimated cost of 20 million Euros (all against Hera): 8 million already spent, 12 million still to be spent. The urban redevelopment of the area – with the construction of a building that will house the offices for 350 employees of the group – will go hand in hand with the reclamation of the site of contaminants that currently, as do filter by Hera, “exceeded 50% of the total and will arrive next year more than 60%. ”

To illustrate the main change from the past thinks the city councilor for urban planning Patrizia Gabellini that is following the process step by step. “It’s been enhanced removal of pollutants with a technological system of underground extraction – explains Gabellini – So far the chosen method for the remediation had been the removal of polluted land portions. From now on will be used more vigorously some pumps that aspire from underground problematic substances. ” And then: “They will be placed in the ground some sealed bearings – continues Gabellini – The bearings are positioned one meter from the surface to prevent leaching, and that is the passage of fluids polluted in depth.” Gabellini we say “satisfied” with the agreement reached, “It’s one of the most difficult and delicate reclamation of which we are concerned because we did not know what substances were in the basement. The difficulties presented themselves a bit ‘at a time, was tiring operation from many points of view with many aspects affrontasti ever before, but everyone did their part. ” Crucial, he says the commissioner, was approv variant g l ‘to n n o s c o r s o c h and struck out plans to build a hotel and an exhibition space, making it simple reclamation activities. Hera made it known that “the whole area continues to be in a safe and constantly monitored,” to protect the health of those who work there and the citizens in general. But, to exclude unexpected, explains Hera, “the monitoring of the environmental matrices will continue in the years after 2018″.

Pierpaolo Velonà