Black Blood - Land of Poisons

• Prize
  Silver in Editorial/Environmental
• Photographer
  Gaetano Fisicaro

Campania, Italy’s region, in recent years has been under the spotlight for the problem known as the Land of Fire. The territory covered by this issue goes from Naples's province to outskirts of Caserta's province. An area of about 1,700 square kilometers, which includes about 88 cities, and affects more than 2 millions of people who have to deal with one of the greatest hardships and environmental disasters of Italy. From the second half of the 80's in several areas, particularly in areas from north of Naples to south of Caserta, were buried on land and in quarries about 10 million tons of industrial waste, toxic and even radioactive in legal and illegal landfills, though the complicity of politics leaders and crimes organization. Environmental disaster caused is of unprecedented proportions, it affect soil, subsoil, air and activities related to them, with a irreversible pollution risk of the aquifer. The environmental disaster is then associated with conseguences on human health. In several areas it was noted an increase of tumors, a large number of cancer deaths and develops of rare diseases; among those most affected, unfortunately, include children.