Stefano Schirato

TERRAMALA

“I don’t think anyone will survive,” said Schiavone, repentant, in his secret testimony. “In Casapesenna, Casal di Principe, Castel Volturno, the inhabitants are all at risk of dying from cancer within twenty years.” Schiavone was former treasurer of Casalesi clan (a Mafia-type clan). The clan is based in Casal di Principe and have been controlling Caserta and most of the territory of the so-called “Land of fires”: an area in Campania, involving 55 municipalities situated among the Caserta and Naples provinces, sadly known for being the most polluted area of this region, due to millions of toxic waste that have been illegally dumped here over the past 20 years.
National and international industries have been illegally disposing hazardous waste thanks to deals with local politicians and the Camorra, cutting down the enormous costs of legal disposing.
Waste is not only buried underground, in fields where agriculture and farming are present, but also incinerated (that’s why it’s called Land of fires).
This is the greatest environmental disaster in Italy, affecting not only soil, and the related products of agriculture and breeding, but also the aquifer. The presence of leachate flowing underground; poisons filling up enormous caves; the air unbreathable due to miasmas and the smoke coming from pyres set on fire. Day by day, the lives of people living near the dumping sites are put at risk, especially the lives of children and young people.