Molentargius-Saline Park begins cleanup of 170 tons of shooting range waste

Remediation efforts have begun in the Molentargius-Saline Regional Natural Park in Quartu Sant’Elena to remove approximately 170 tons of waste left by a former shooting range. The cleanup targets the Culatica basin, addressing debris accumulated over the 25 years since the Poetto shooting range closed.

The project involves removing roughly 96 cubic meters of material, including clay target fragments and plastic cartridge components known as ‘borre’. The work covers an area of about 6,400 square meters along an 800-meter stretch of the Quartu Lagoon banks, reaching depths of eight meters.

Funded by the Sardinia Region with 440,000 euros through the Department of Environmental Defense, the operation is expected to last approximately two months. Environmental officials noted that the debris poses risks to the ecosystem by hindering the development of bottom-dwelling organisms and potentially releasing hydrocarbon-based paints from the ceramic targets into the water.