Turin, the «Smog Process» begins:the former mayors Fassino and Appendino sued for the crime of environmental pollution

The investigations were started by a complaint presented in 2017 by the Torino Respira Committee, which today became a civil party

The "Smog Trial" has begun in Turin, in which, among others, former mayors have been summoned Piero Fassino And Chiara Appendino.This is the first case in Italy where local administrators are called to answer in court for the crime of negligent environmental pollution, introduced in 2015.The prosecutor's office of the Piedmontese capital has ordered the direct summons to court against the two former first citizens (but also their councilors with responsibility for the Environment).At today's pre-trial hearing, Tuesday 18 June, the requests for civil action were presented.The request of the Torino Respira Committee, author of the complaint that started the investigation, was accepted, together with Greenpeace Italia and Isde (Italian Association of Doctors for the Environment).Outside the Palace of Justice some Fridays For Future militants gathered and displayed a banner with the words:«The right to clean air is climate justice».

The complaint and the beginning of the investigation

The complaint that started the investigations by the Turin Prosecutor's Office was presented in 2017.What the local administrators are accused of is the fact that they have not adopted effective measures to avoid the repeated exceeding of the concentration limits of polluting substances in the air.«After yet another ride home amidst the February smog I decided to involve my lawyer friends, who are now the legal consultants of the Torino Respira Committee, and after rather in-depth technical and legal work we decided to file the exposed", says Roberto Mezzalama, president of the Torino Respira Committee.According to the technical consultants of the Prosecutor's Office, exceeding the legal limits have caused over a thousand premature deaths and numerous hospital admissions in Turin.Yet, the committee claims, local institutions have not done enough to reduce air pollution levels and protect citizens' health.

Pollution in the Po Valley

It is not just the citizens of Turin who are dealing with heavy air pollution but those of the entire Po Valley, which for years has been confirmed at the top of the European regions with the lowest level of air quality.According to estimates by the European Environment Agency, the concentration of pollutants in the air has caused only in 2020 330 thousand premature deaths in Europe, of which a fifth in Italy.The situation in the regions of Northern Italy is aggravated not only by the concentration of industrial activities and intensive farming, but also by the very orography of the Po Valley, surrounded by mountains on almost all sides.«The fact that Turin is objectively in an unfavorable situation for the dispersion of pollutants has always been used as an excuse rather than as a stimulus to do more and better», attacks the president of the Torino Respira Committee.

The next steps

The trial that opened today in Turin began with requests for the establishment of a civil party.The judge has called a new hearing for July 4th, at 3pm, to allow the parties to present their positions and decide whether or not to continue the trial.If the Court decides to move forward, starting from the subsequent hearings there will be a real confrontation between the prosecution and the defence.To enrich the debate there will also be the contribution of authoritative experts, called to have their say on the regions of air pollution in Turin, on the damage to health caused by smog and also on the possible responsibilities of local administrators, both in the Municipality and in the Region.

On the cover:Sit-in by Friday for Future activists in front of the Turin court, where the trial for the crime of environmental pollution is taking place, 18 June 2024 (ANSA/Tino Romano)