Fire in East Rome, dioxin levels rise

On June 26, 2024, a significant fire erupted in an industrial shed in the San Basilio district, within Rome’s fourth town hall. The origin of the fire is still unknown. Although the fire has been put out, air quality assessments by ARPA, the Regional Environmental Agency, indicated a rise in dioxin levels. Following the release of this information, Mayor Roberto Gualtieri issued a secondary decree that includes: a ban on harvesting food of plant and animal origin for consumption or sale; a ban on grazing and foraging of farmyard animals; and a ban on using fodder and grains for animals gathered from the specified area. Currently, ARPA’s air monitoring is ongoing, aiming to collect ground samples to evaluate the potential impact of the particles found in the air samples.