Italian Tin paradox solved

on 27.09.14 in Legislation .

After 12 months of the publication of our article about the Tin paradox, it happened what not happened in 13 years: the Italian Government corrected the error !

The Italian Paradox on Tin soil contamination is known among professionals who deal with problems of soil contamination: engineers, geologists, chemists, public administrators, but also lawyers, accountants, real estate brokers involved in environmental due diligence for the sale-purchase of properties: that all those who have lived in this country for over 13 years with the legislative error involving the value of the Tin soil concentration limit, confused in accordance with the well more dangerous organo-tin compounds. Mistake that for over 13 years in our country caused squandering of public and private resources and who in recent years had singularly reduced Italy only country in Europe with soils contaminated by Tin !

I faced the problem of the error once posted soil Tin limit in the former DM 471/1999, which for the first time in Italy harmonized different regional and inexplicably reduced the Tin soil limit in residential area to 50 times the pre-current regional regulations. At the end of the technical discussions on this issue, almost all parties adhered to the thesis: “it is a mistake”, and added with regret “a law, although wrong, must be respected”, some claimed “would be appropriate to change the law” and many are were the calls for the publication of a detailed review on the “Tin paradox”.

Encouragement (and suggestions) more decisive I received at the First Congress of the Geologists of Basilicata in December 2012 where I met the President of the Institute for the Protection and Environmental Research, Ing. Bernardo De Bernadinis, collected suggestions, invitations and wrote to the journal “Ambiente & Sicurezza” that published the review in issue 13 of July 2013: Soils may be contaminated: the “Italian Tin paradox“.

In September 2013, the review on Tin Paradox has arrived on the desk of some members of the Italian Environmental Commission of the Chamber of Deputies and finally, Environment Committee Territory and Public Works after ca. 12 months after publication of the review in July 2013 on the paradox of the pond, as has happened not happened in 13 years: the error has been corrected! It might seem hard to believe, but the Italian Official State Gazette of 20.08.2014 has published the Law n. 116 of 11.08.2014 , which states: “3 bis . Table 1 in the ‘Annex 5 of Title V of Part Four of the legislative decree 3 April 2006, n. 152, in paragraph 13 , “the word Tin is replaced by the following: “Organo-tin compounds”.

Can you say “better late than never” to the chagrin of those who saw a lot of money, public and private, wasted because of this error finally healed. We can thank the technicians of the government that in these 13 years have clearly stated that “the legislature was wrong” to thank the editors of Ambiente & Sicurezza journal and members of the Environmental Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, without which the ‘error’ would persevered.