Atlas of Contaminated Sites

Former SIN, now under the region, Bassa valle del Chienti (Macerata, Fermo), Marche, Italy

Lower Chienti river basin

The lower Chienti valley in the Marche, where from the 1970s chemical processes tied to the footwear district contaminated groundwater with chlorinated solvents (trichloroethane, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene).

Status
Under assessment
Area
2,641 ha on land, 1,191 ha in water1
Activity
since 1970
Media
soil, groundwater
Kind of site
chemical works, textiles
  1. Area. 2,641 hectares on land and 1,191 at sea according to SENTIERI (2023); five municipalities in the provinces of Macerata and Fermo.

Contaminants

Organic compounds

Status

Under assessment

Since 2013 remediation has been the Region's responsibility. No up-to-date official source on the state of characterisation and remediation was found; the status given here is a cautious one.

Story

SENTIERI classes the site as an area with chemical plants tied to the footwear industry, active since the 1970s.

Groundwater was found to contain trichloroethane, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene and 1,1-dichloroethylene. Soils hold light hydrocarbons, benzene, toluene, xylenes, benzo(g,h,i)perylene, dioxins and furans, metals, chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons and DDT with its derivatives DDD and DDE.

The site joined the SINs under decree 468/2001 and was delimited in 2003; in 2013 it passed to the Marche Region.

Timeline

  1. 1970Chemical processing tied to the footwear district begins.
  2. 2001Decree 468/2001 adds the site to the SINs.
  3. 2003Perimeter set by decree of 26 February 2003.
  4. 2013The decree of 11 January 2013 hands the site to the Marche Region.

Health

SENTIERI, Sixth Report (2023; mortality 2013-2017, hospital admissions 2014-2018, regional reference): excess all-cause mortality in both sexes and excess mortality from all malignant tumours in women. Among causes linked a priori to the site's exposures, excess mortality from colorectal cancer in women; a deficit for stomach cancer in men. In men, excess hospital admissions for all malignant tumours.

From the literature

Species that acted on one of this site's contaminants in at least one study. The list is automatic and takes no account of this site's soil, concentrations or climate.

Plants

  • Cucurbita pepoZucchini, pumpkinDDT and breakdown productsDioxins and furansEvidence: field
  • Lolium perennePerennial ryegrassPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsPetroleum hydrocarbonsEvidence: field
  • Medicago sativaAlfalfa, lucernePetroleum hydrocarbonsPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: field
  • Festuca arundinaceaTall fescuePetroleum hydrocarbonsEvidence: field
  • Paulownia tomentosaPrincess tree, empress treePetroleum hydrocarbonsEvidence: field
  • Populus × generosaHybrid poplar (P. trichocarpa × P. deltoides)Chlorinated solvents (TCE, PCE, chloroform)Evidence: field

Fungi

The rest are on the contaminant pages.

Nearby

SIN, Falconara Marittima (Ancona), Marche

Falconara Marittima

46 km

  • Petroleum hydrocarbons
  • MTBE
  • BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes)
  • Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

SIN, Umbria

Terni - Papigno

113 km

  • Asbestos
  • Polychlorinated biphenyls
  • Chromium
  • Nickel

SIN, Bussi sul Tirino, Bolognano (Pescara), Abruzzo

Bussi sul Tirino

121 km

  • Chlorinated solvents (TCE, PCE, chloroform)
  • Vinyl chloride
  • Mercury
  • Lead

SIN, Colleferro, Anagni, Ceccano, Frosinone e altri 15 comuni (Roma, Frosinone), Lazio

Sacco River Valley

182 km

  • Hexachlorocyclohexane (lindane)
  • Pesticides (mixed)
  • DDT and breakdown products
  • Chlorinated solvents (TCE, PCE, chloroform)

Phytoremediation

Sources

  1. Riferimenti normativi per i Siti di bonifica di Interesse Nazionale (agg. 31 dicembre 2025), ISPRA, 2025
  2. SENTIERI. Sesto Rapporto - Basso Bacino del fiume Chienti (Epidemiol Prev 2023;47(1-2) Suppl 1), con allegato "Informazioni sui 46 siti studiati", Epidemiologia & Prevenzione / ISS, 2023

Draft compiled from public sources, not yet reviewed.