Brussels, 03/04/2012 (Agence Europe) - On 16 March, the European Commission adopted a draft amending budget no. 2 for the financial year 2012, dealing with the intervention of the Solidarity Fund of the European Union to a level of €18 million in commitment and payment appropriations, following floods in Italy (Liguria and Tuscany) in October 2011.
On 25 October 2011, a low-pressure system centring on north-eastern Italy caused torrential downpours. The worst-hit regions were La Spezia in Liguria and Massa Carrara in Tuscany. After this torrential rain, many mountain streams broke their banks, carrying enormous quantities of water, mud and debris along valleys and causing floods in a number of towns and cities along the banks of the rivers Vara and Magra. The area around Cinque Terre, in the province of La Spezia, was also severely hit (which is part of the Italian Riviera and a UNESCO world heritage site). The disaster caused major damage to houses, businesses and farms and created disruption on the major transport networks and basic public infrastructures.
The Italian authorities have estimated the total direct damage at €722,467,299. This sum represents 20.43% of the usual threshold of €3.536 billion applicable to Italy in 2011 for the intervention of the Solidarity Fund. In view of the fact that the total damage is below the normal threshold for intervention of the Solidarity Fund, the application was examined under the “extraordinary regional disasters” criterion, and in this scenario, the flooding justifies an exceptional intervention of the Solidarity Fund. (LC/transl.fl)