Site of National Interest (SIN), Valle del Basento (Matera), Basilicata, Italy
Val Basento industrial area
An industrial area along the Basento river in the province of Matera, begun in 1961 around the ANIC/Enichem chemical complex; it includes the former Materit asbestos-cement plant and dozens of other firms. Soil and groundwater hold metals, PAHs and chlorinated solvents.
At a glance
- Status
- Under assessment
- Area
- 3,330 ha on land1
- Activity
- since 1961
- Media
- soil, groundwater
- Kind of site
- chemical works, petrochemicals, asbestos
- Area. 3,330 hectares according to SENTIERI (2023).
Contaminants
Status
Under assessment
No up-to-date official source on the state of characterisation and remediation could be retrieved: the MASE fact sheet for the site was not accessible. The status given here is a cautious one.
Story
Industrial activity in the Basento valley began in 1961. The documentation gathered by SENTIERI lists the ANIC/Enichem chemical complex, the former Materit plant (asbestos products) and 67 firms of various kinds.
Soil and groundwater were found to contain heavy metals (hexavalent chromium, mercury, cadmium, lead, nickel, selenium, aluminium, iron, manganese), PAHs, chlorinated solvents (chloroform, 1,1-dichloroethylene, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene) and aromatic compounds.
The site was named a SIN by law 179/2002 and its perimeter set in 2003.
Timeline
- 1961Industrial activity begins.
- 2002Law 179/2002 names the Val Basento a SIN.
- 2003Perimeter set by decree of 26 February 2003.
Health
SENTIERI, Sixth Report (2023; mortality 2013-2017, hospital admissions 2014-2018, regional reference): excess mortality from circulatory diseases in men and from urinary diseases in women. Among causes linked a priori to the site's exposures: excess mortality from asthma in men, from lung cancer in women and, with uncertain estimates, from mesothelioma in men; excess hospital admissions for lung cancer in both sexes. Admissions for all causes are below expected.
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
- Eichhornia crassipesWater hyacinthEvidence: field
- Brassica junceaIndian mustardEvidence: field
- Cannabis sativaIndustrial hempEvidence: field
- Miscanthus × giganteusGiant miscanthusPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: field
- Phytolacca americanaAmerican pokeweedEvidence: field
- Ricinus communisCastor beanEvidence: field
Fungi
- Funneliformis mosseaePolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: greenhouse
- Paxillus involutusBrown roll-rimEvidence: greenhouse
- Pisolithus albusEvidence: greenhouse
- Agaricus bisporusButton mushroomPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: laboratory
- Aspergillus nigerBlack mouldEvidence: laboratory
- Cunninghamella elegansPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsEvidence: laboratory
The rest are on the contaminant pages.
Nearby
SIN, Taranto, Statte, Puglia
Taranto
60 km
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
- Dioxins and furans
- Polychlorinated biphenyls
- Petroleum hydrocarbons
Phytoremediation
SIN, Tito (Potenza), Basilicata
Tito
69 km
- Phosphogypsum
- Asbestos
- Chlorinated solvents (TCE, PCE, chloroform)
- Vinyl chloride
SIN, Puglia
Bari - Fibronit
83 km
- Asbestos
SIN, Puglia
Brindisi
128 km
Sources
- Riferimenti normativi per i Siti di bonifica di Interesse Nazionale (agg. 31 dicembre 2025), ISPRA, 2025
- SENTIERI. Sesto Rapporto - Area industriale della Val Basento (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.