River in Northern Italy Declared 'Disaster' After Spill; Parliament Debates Safety Rules

摘要

The Italian Ministry of Environment Feb. 26 declared the valley of the Po River in northern Italy an environmental disaster area in the wake of an oil spill that threatened wildlife, agriculture, and tourism in the area.rnItaly's Parliament March 1 began debate aimed at creating a series of safeguards to avoid similar problems in the future.rnThe ministry was granted the power to declare environmental disasters in 2007, but it had not done so until the Po River problem, which Minister of Environment Stefania Prestigiacomo blamed on saboteurs.