A violent fire broke out in Via Salaria, in Rome, at the Tmb waste treatment facility, which for years has made life unbearable in the surrounding residential neighbourhoods.
A massive fire broke out in the night between Monday 10 and Tuesday 11 December at a mechanical-biological treatment (Tmb) waste facility in Via Salaria, Rome. Since 4:30 in the morning numerous fire brigade crews have been on site, but the scale of the blaze meant that after several hours the flames had still not been brought under control.
A dense cloud is rising from the site and the air in the area is unbreathable. According to the Ansa news agency, the fire broke out "in a two-thousand-square-metre warehouse used as a waste storage facility. The Campidoglio has convened a steering committee on the massive blaze, calling together, among others, Civil Protection and the municipal department for Environmental Protection, which is responsible for air quality."
The carabinieri are also investigating to establish the causes of the fire. "The plant," added the president of Rome's third municipality, Giovanni Caudo, "is completely compromised. It is obvious that the smoke is toxic because rubbish, oil and plastic are burning, but the fire brigade has reassured us that it is moving towards uninhabited areas. So at the moment we are not alarmed about that. As a precaution, however, the nursery near the Tmb has been closed."
The issue is particularly sensitive for the population living in the surrounding neighbourhoods, especially those of Villa Spada, Fidene and Nuovo Salario. For years, the waste treatment site has been the subject of fierce protests from local residents. Even under normal operating conditions, the Tmb emits nauseating odours that have now become a daily reality for the people who live there — forced to keep their windows permanently shut, especially in summer.
Residents formed a committee some time ago and have organised dozens of meetings and demonstrations to demand the closure of the plant, which is effectively located on a busy road and in the immediate vicinity of predominantly residential neighbourhoods. Sergio, from the Fidene neighbourhood committee, told the Dire news agency during the most recent protest march, in October, that "in 2018 we had more new cancer cases. We believe it is the fault of the Tmb and the stench, because something like this had never happened before, and we will not stop until we prove it and manage to get it shut down." Stefano, from the Serpentara committee, added: "We no longer have a dignified life; our rights are suspended."
"Here," Caudo added, "people live with the stench. We want a radical change of direction. This city needs to be modernised, not anchored to the Middle Ages. You cannot poison the air its inhabitants breathe." The Greens, meanwhile, have called for intervention by the national government.
