Italian authorities intensify crackdown on illegal waste dumping and trafficking

Regional and national officials in Italy have taken coordinated actions against multiple illegal waste activities. In the Lazio town of Morolo, the regional president signed an urgent order to begin securing and removing more than 13,700 tonnes of illegally stored waste at a former landfill, a site previously designated as a national interest due to contamination risks. In Grosseto, Carabinieri seized an entire agricultural plot that had been used as a dump for construction debris, metal parts and other waste, opening an investigation into unauthorized waste handling. Police in the Abruzzo town of Parete intercepted a 73‑year‑old man transporting sizable quantities of metal scrap without permits, seizing his vehicle and the load. At the same time, a major organized network handling textile waste was dismantled in northern Italy. Investigators confiscated a company, a fleet of trucks and assets worth about €12 million, and charged 20 people for trafficking over 26,000 tonnes of textile scraps—enough for more than 50 million garments—many of which were illegally classified as “End of Waste” and stored in abandoned industrial warehouses or exported to Turkey. Local officials also called for stricter enforcement of regional fire bans on vegetable waste burning and examined waste transfer procedures in other municipalities. The series of operations highlights a broader effort to curb illicit waste disposal and protect public health and the environment.