The Mamme no inceneritore carry out protest and public information activities, and are fighting against the construction, in the municipality of Sesto Fiorentino, of a plant that would burn waste to produce energy: a waste-to-energy plant, or as everyone calls it, an incinerator.

The project, according to the mothers, runs counter to every good recycling practice promoted by a society that cares about citizens' health as well as the finances of local administrations. The amount of electricity produced, moreover, would be of little relevance.

"We're not dreamers, an alternative is possible"

Waste-to-energy plants, which the government is in effect promoting through the Sblocca Italia decree, are not the only solution. The alternative is to encourage recycling and ensure that separate waste collection reaches at least the legal threshold of 65 per cent (already required by 2012 but achieved only by a few virtuous examples): minimising the proportion of unsorted waste to be incinerated or sent to landfill, and recovering valuable materials to be fed back into the production cycle. The Zero waste movement goes even further, aiming to eliminate waste altogether. This can also be achieved through better industrial design, which finds innovative solutions for creating more sustainable and more easily recyclable products and packaging.

Not only would harmful emissions be reduced in this way, but public finances would be guaranteed substantial revenues from the sale of materials obtained through separate waste collection: for citizens, and especially for businesses, this would in turn translate into a reduction in waste taxes.

The good news is that this is possible, and there are cases where unsorted waste can account for as little as 15 per cent. The bad news is that this situation rarely arises where a waste-to-energy plant is present: for a plant to be profitable it requires an abundance of waste to burn, which will inevitably be diverted away from the virtuous practice of recycling. This is even more risky when the entire waste cycle, from collection to energy recovery, is managed by the same company.

Where things stand

While in recent years the increase in separate waste collection had given the mothers reason to hope that the new plant would never be built, a recent state-regions conference changed the picture entirely: having rejected the principle of regional self-sufficiency in waste disposal, a national-level disposal network has been created.

The Florence plant will therefore be able to burn waste from other regions too, placing a burden on the local population that depends neither on their wishes nor on their control.

Dioxins, particulates and nanoparticles are unwanted by-products of waste combustion: trapped in filters, converted into ash or released into the atmosphere, they must be carefully managed to prevent them from accumulating in the surrounding environment and in the bodies of the people who live there. This is why mothers are fighting on the front line: to protect the health of their children who, having been exposed to these emissions for years, will have to live with the consequences.

Construction work on the plant is expected to begin before the summer, after the final authorisation was received in August 2015, ten years after the first environmental impact assessment. The plain, which is densely populated, already hosts numerous industrial and commercial activities, and is at the centre of an intense debate over the expansion of the motorway and Florence airport.

The Mamme no Inceneritore will take part in the "Basta Veleni" demonstration in Brescia on 10 April, and have in turn organised a demonstration in Florence for 14 May.