12/04/2017 (Agence Europe) – On Wednesday 12 April, the European Commission announced it has allocated nearly €50 million from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to support the renovation and conservation of the Italian site of Pompei. This funding is aimed at consolidating the structures and ancient buildings of the archaeological site "in order to restore its urban character", and training staff. During the previous period, the EU adopted a "big project" equipped with €105 million for supporting the renovation of this Italian site which is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The objective of all this work is to put an end to the degradation of the site which is partly due to bad weather, but also to disparate excavations since the 18th Century (see EUROPE 10780). (PH)