Ecobale emergency, Borrelli: "Let's work together as we do in every emergency"

"The Civil Protection System expressed once again its capacity for intervention. This activity will proceed with all the operative structures and, during the fifteen days since the declaration of the state of emergency, working all together with all the professional skills, resources and tools available, we took action as we do in every emergency".  These the words of the Head of the Civil Protection Department, Angelo Borrelli, pronounced during the press conference held today in Piombino (Li) during the visit to the places where the recovery operations of secondary solid fuel ecoballs (SSF) are in progress, after the declaration of the state of emergency issued by the Council of Ministers on July 22.

The National Civil Protection is composed of operational structures, the scientific community and, stressed the Head of Department Borrelli, "the fundamental pillar are the citizens who always want to cooperate by adopting correct behaviors".     

This is an important day for the protection of the environment, pointed out the Minister of the Environment and Protection of Land and Sea, Sergio Costa, " because all State forces are working together to save our beautiful sea". "I strongly wanted this operation", stressed Costa, "who in a few days has already given the first results with great merit of the citizens who have strongly requested this operation".

The Italian Government, considering the needs of the territory, said the President of the Region of Tuscany, Enrico Rossi, "has found the legal framework, with a specific decree for this matter, which has allowed to intervene with rapidity, effectiveness and efficiency. In the meantime, it is necessary to move forward more and more to reconcile the activities that take place at sea in compliance with the rules".   

After the greetings of the Chief of the General Affairs Office of the Navy General Staff, Giuseppe Berutti Bergotto, the Commander of the Underwater Command and Raiders Group (Comusubin), Massimiliano Rossi, presented the institutional tasks of the Underwater Operations Group and illustrated all the details of "Cerboli Pulita".

The Navy deployed three specialized naval units in the Gulf of Follonica and the Underwater Operations Group of the Comsubin that are operating with sonar for underwater research, remote control submarine (ROV), lifting crane, decompression chamber and logistic arrangements, able to guarantee, after the recovery of the ecobale at sea, the storage of the recovered material while waiting for the disposal procedures.

The recovery operation, managed by the Navy, provides three phases: the search and location of contacts, identification and recovery of the ecobale. In particular, as far as the third phase is concerned, according to Commander Massimiliano Rossi, it is scheduled the divers' immersion on the identified contacts, the insertion of the ecobale in the containment nets, the transport to the surface and the boarding of the same on the Caprera Ship.

The operation is subject to marine weather conditions, visibility and underwater currents and the state of discovery of the ecobale. In the case of material that will be found beyond 60 meters depth, concluded the commander of the Comsubin, it will be necessary the intervention of the Anteo Ship that will carry out the recovery through the use of the integrated system for deep diving. This activity will be carried out as soon as the ship will be available.

The visit was attended by the President of the North Tyrrhenian Sea Port System Authority, Stefano Corsini and the Mayor of Piombino, Francesco Ferrari.