Prolonged inaction by Italian State on widespread dumping put Terra dei Fuochi residents’ lives at risk
15 april 2025
On January 30, 2025, the European Court of Human Rights issued its judgment1 in the case of Cannavacciuolo and Others v. Italy (applications nos. 51567/14 and three others) stating that there
had been:
a violation of Article 2 (right to life) of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The case concerned dumping, burying or burning of waste on private land, often carried out by organised criminal groups, in the parts of the Campania region known as the Terra dei Fuochi, where some 2.9 million people live. Increased rates of cancer and pollution of groundwater had been recorded in the area.
The Court found in particular that the Italian State had failed to deal with such a serious situation with the diligence and expedition required – despite having known about the problem for many years – specifically in assessing the problem, preventing its continuation, and communicating to the affected public.
The Court held, unanimously, under Article 46 (binding force and enforcement of judgments), that Italy had to draw up a comprehensive strategy to address the Terra dei Fuochi situation, set up an independent monitoring mechanism, and establish a public information platform. The time-limit for this is two years, during which the pending 36 related applications from around 4,700 applicants will be adjourned.
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