According to official data, air pollution levels in Milan — including fine particulates — have been among Europe’s highest for February. Fine particulate matter poses the most health risks because it can go deep into the lungs and even make its way into the bloodstream. “It stinks! I smell a constant stench of smog, I […]
Italy has joined the list of countries moving to restrict labels on plant-based “meat” products. The lawmakers proposing such labeling rules — which include banning terms like “burger” or “sausage” — argue that using traditional meat-related terms for plant-based foods could mislead consumers. The proposed legislation says that use of terms like “tofu steak” or […]
Following weeks of no rainfall, and with last summer’s drought still fresh for Italy, many of Venice’s celebrated canals are running dry. This time of year, flooding is usually the biggest concern for the City of Water, but abnormally low tides and lack of rain have caused water taxis, ambulances and gondolas to run aground. […]
The Italian Senate has voted to approve an amendment to the budget law that will close the remaining ten mink farms in Italy within six months and ban fur farming throughout the country. The decision came about after talks with Humane Society International/Europe, which offered practical strategies in its report Mink breeding in Italy: Mapping […]
Flood waters swamped Venice’s iconic Saint Mark’s Square on Tuesday, despite the implementation of a barrier system that was supposed to protect the city from the flooding events that are getting more frequent because of the climate crisis. The water level rose to a high of 4.5 feet above sea level in the afternoon, AFP […]
A rising tide threatened to flood Venice, Italy, on Saturday, providing the first test for the city’s long-awaited flood barrier. The tide peaked around four feet, potentially affecting more than one-third of the city, but controversial underwater barriers contained the rising waters, the AP reported. Popular tourist attraction St. Mark’s Square usually floods at three […]
By Agostino Petroni When Cosimo Di Biasi, 66, decides it’s the right day to fish, he begins at 5 p.m. He drives 4 miles to the port of Torre Santa Sabina, boards Nonno Ugo, his 21-foot fiberglass boat, and navigates south for a half-hour to reach a marine reserve in Puglia, in southern Italy. Agostino […]
In a troubling sign for the future of the Italian Alps, the snow and ice in a glacier is turning pink due to the growth of snow-melting algae, according to scientists studying the pink ice phenomenon, as CNN reported. The algae will make the snow melt faster. The salmon-hue that has tinged the snow is […]
By Douglas Broom Rifugio Guide del Cervino is a bar and restaurant atop the Plateau Rosa, a glacial ridge in the Italian Alps. Or at least, it was. Climate change is moving it inexorably toward Switzerland as the glacier on which it sits steadily melts. We’re used to news reports about people and wildlife forced […]