Lack Of Rain Leaves Italy Gasping

A blanket of smog covers Milan, empty reservoirs bake in Sicily and a lack of rain across Italy exacerbates pollution and sparks droughts

Rome, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th Feb, 2024) A blanket of smog covers Milan, empty reservoirs bake in Sicily and a lack of rain across Italy exacerbates pollution and sparks droughts.

Gas-guzzling cars were banned from roads on Tuesday in Milan and eight other cities across Lombardy after the northern Italian industrial region registered high levels of particle pollution that is dangerous for health.

"The levels of smog have become intolerable," 60-year-old resident Sergio, who has lived around Milan for the past 36 years, told AFPTV.

The high levels are due to three factors, according to Italian environmental group Legambiente: road transport emissions, the heating of homes and the agriculture sector.

The region, home to many intensive livestock farms, banned the customary spraying of animal waste onto fields, a practice known to cause air pollution.

Legambiente expert Andrea Minutolo told AFP it was no coincidence the air pollution levels had risen in February, as a month-long ban in the region on spraying waste had been lifted at the end of January.

"The sky is grey even if it's a cloudless day. The quality of air in Milan has never been very good, now it's disgusting," said Paolo Ciacco, 22, who said he was considering wearing a mask.

Northern Italy has ranked among the most polluted areas in Europe for many years.

Part of Lombardy's problem is geographic -- it sits in a basin between mountains, which means it is poorly ventilated.

But clean air campaigners say this handicap is too often used as an excuse by authorities for high levels of air pollution.

High particulate levels were also registered in the capital, Rome.