Site of National Interest (SIN), Augusta, Priolo Gargallo, Melilli, Siracusa, Sicilia, Italy
Priolo (Augusta–Priolo–Melilli)
One of Europe's largest refining and petrochemical areas, on the coast between Augusta and Syracuse, active since 1949-1950. Groundwater and soil carry hydrocarbons, chlorinated solvents, dioxins and metals; the sediments of Augusta Bay hold mercury and hexachlorobenzene discharged by a chlor-alkali plant.
At a glance
- Status
- Remediation under way
- Area
- 5,815 ha on land, 10,185 ha in water1
- Activity
- since 1949
- Media
- soil, groundwater, sediment, living organisms
- Kind of site
- petrochemicals, oil, chemical works, port, asbestos, landfill, power plant
- Area. Figures from the 2021 MASE fact sheet (about 5,815 hectares on land and 10,185 at sea, including Augusta Bay). The perimeter was redrawn by decree of 3 September 2024; the new area has not been verified.
Contaminants
Organic compounds
Fibres
Status
Remediation under way
A Framework Programme Agreement of 25 June 2015 and a Programme Agreement of 29 December 2020 for containment and remediation are in force. No up-to-date official percentage of remediated area was found; the sediments of Augusta Bay remain contaminated.
Story
The first industrial plants date from 1949-1950. The main activities are oil refining, processing of its derivatives and power generation; the perimeter also includes cement works, landfills, the former Eternit plant in Syracuse, a salt marsh and the ports of Augusta and Syracuse. Activity has shrunk since the mid-1980s.
Beneath refineries, chemical plants and tank farms the groundwater holds free-phase hydrocarbon product, both floating and, in places, denser than water. Soils contain hydrocarbons, PAHs, chlorinated aliphatics, BTEX, dioxins and metals (arsenic, chromium VI, mercury, zinc, copper, selenium, vanadium).
In Augusta Bay a mercury-cell chlor-alkali plant, in operation from 1958 to 2003, discharged more than 500 tonnes of mercury into the sea. Surface sediments measured 4.1-114.2 µg/g of mercury and 11.4-4,493 ng/g of hexachlorobenzene. A ten-year study (2003-2013) found that sediment contamination persists, while bioavailability and biological effects in marine organisms declined gradually after 2004.
Timeline
- 1949First oil-refining plants are established.
- 1958The mercury-cell chlor-alkali plant on Augusta Bay starts operating.
- 1998Law 426/1998 names Priolo a site of national interest.
- 2000First perimeter (decree of 10 January 2000).
- 2003The chlor-alkali plant closes.
- 2006New perimeter (decree of 10 March 2006).
- 2015Framework Programme Agreement for the clean-up of contaminated areas.
- 2020Programme Agreement between the Environment Ministry and the Sicilian Region.
- 2024The perimeter is redrawn by decree of 3 September 2024.
Health
SENTIERI, Sixth Report (2023; mortality 2013-2017, regional reference): all-cause mortality as expected in men and below expected in women; in both sexes excess for diseases of the digestive system and, with uncertain estimates, for all malignant tumours; excess of urinary-system diseases in men. Among causes linked a priori to the site's exposures, excess of mesothelioma (all sites and pleural) in both sexes. In all the younger age groups there is an excess of hospital admissions for all causes and for acute respiratory infections.
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
- Medicago sativaAlfalfa, lucernePolychlorinated biphenylsPetroleum hydrocarbonsPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: field
- Agrostis capillarisCommon bentEvidence: field
- Brassica junceaIndian mustardEvidence: field
- Cucurbita pepoZucchini, pumpkinPolychlorinated biphenylsDioxins and furansEvidence: field
- Eichhornia crassipesWater hyacinthEvidence: field
- Festuca rubraRed fescueEvidence: field
Fungi
- Funneliformis mosseaePolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: greenhouse
- Rhizophagus irregularisEvidence: greenhouse
- Aspergillus nigerBlack mouldEvidence: laboratory
- Agaricus bisporusButton mushroomPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: laboratory
- Fomitopsis pinicolaRed-belted conkEvidence: laboratory
- Irpex lacteusMilk-white toothed polyporePolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsPolychlorinated biphenylsEvidence: laboratory
The rest are on the contaminant pages.
Nearby
SIN, Biancavilla (Catania), Sicilia
Biancavilla
60 km
- Fluoro-edenite
SIN, Gela (Caltanissetta), Sicilia
Gela
81 km
- Petroleum hydrocarbons
- BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes)
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
- Chlorinated solvents (TCE, PCE, chloroform)
SIN, Milazzo, San Filippo del Mela, Pace del Mela, San Pier Niceto, Monforte San Giorgio (Messina), Sicilia
Milazzo
115 km
- Petroleum hydrocarbons
- BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes)
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
- Dioxins and furans
SIN, Crotone; Cassano allo Ionio e Cerchiara di Calabria (Cosenza), Calabria
Crotone - Cassano - Cerchiara
273 km
Sources
- Scheda SIN Priolo (copia d'archivio), MASE, 2021
- Riferimenti normativi per i Siti di bonifica di Interesse Nazionale (agg. 31 dicembre 2025), ISPRA, 2025
- SENTIERI. Sesto Rapporto - Priolo (Epidemiol Prev 2023;47(1-2) Suppl 1), Epidemiologia & Prevenzione / ISS, 2023
- 10-year time course of Hg and organic compounds in Augusta Bay: Bioavailability and biological effects in marine organisms (Benedetti et al., Front. Public Health), Frontiers, 2022
Draft compiled from public sources, not yet reviewed.