The Sarno River Regional Council meets in extraordinary session: a showdown on cleanup and safety will take place on October 1st.

Naples — A never-ending environmental emergency, decades of promises, and a plan of extraordinary interventions awaiting definitive answers regarding implementation timelines and the actual safety of the area. The restoration of the Sarno River is once again at the center of political debate in Campania: the Campania Regional Council, chaired by Massimiliano Manfredi, will meet in an extraordinary, single-issue session on October 1st.

The meeting, formally scheduled for the 11:30 a.m. to 16:00 p.m. time slot, responds to a pressing request from the minority council groups. The agenda includes a key and detailed item: "Rehabilitation and safety of the Sarno River: analysis of the current status, monitoring of completed interventions, strategic proposals."

The challenge of Europe's most polluted basin

The meeting comes at a crucial time for the fate of the river system that flows through 49 municipalities across three provinces (Naples, Salerno, and Avellino). The Sarno and its tributaries (including the Solofrana Stream and the Alveo Comune Nocerino) continue to be an open wound due to pollution from civil and industrial wastewater and the recurring risks of flooding, particularly affecting the Vesuvian area and the Agro Nocerino-Sarnese.

In recent months, regional political forces and local authorities—primarily the Municipality of Scafati—have been vocal in calling for a review of the current state of the project. The opposition is seeking clarity on the delays accumulated over the years and the resources allocated, demanding certainty regarding the work schedule.

The scope of interventions: from the maxi-tender to the dredging

At the centre of the debate in the chamber will be the strategies and funding recently put in place by the Campania Region to break the historical impasse of the river: The 407 million euro plan: The Region has announced a maxi-tender divided into 7 lots for a massive hydraulic redevelopment and safety programme.

The goal is to increase the reservoir and flood control capacity by 5 million cubic meters by 2032. Dredging of the riverbed and discharge at the mouth: Among the technical cornerstones are cleaning and unclogging the riverbed to ensure a hydraulic flow of 120 cubic meters per second at the mouth, alleviating the structural problems of residential areas.

The Vesuvian flood basins: Targeted interventions include extraordinary maintenance and the first phase of construction of the basins in the municipalities of the Vesuvian area (including Scafati, Pompei, Striano, Boscoreale, Poggiomarino, and Terzigno) to stop flooding.

Completion of the sewerage and purification network: Monitoring will also include the progress of the plants managed in collaboration with Gori and the Campano Water Authority (EIC), with the upgrades at the Angri and Foce Sarno purification plants to complete the cleanup.

Plastic-catching barriers and cleanup: Projects developed include managing floating barriers to intercept waste before it reaches the sea and restoring the hydraulic functionality of various river stretches.

Towards October 1st: institutional debate

The extraordinary session will therefore represent a key moment of formal verification: on the one hand, the regional administration will be called upon to illustrate the timeline for the awards and the impact of the environmental works carried out in compliance with the climate resilience parameters (DNSH); on the other, the opposition and local representatives will demand certain timelines, transparency, and any necessary corrections to prevent yet another strategic plan from becoming mired in bureaucracy.