PVC Managers Get Away With Manslaughter And Causing Environmental Disaster
Rome/London, 2 November 2001: Greenpeace declared today to be “a dark day for environmental justice” as twenty eight
senior managers of petrochemical companies Enichem and Montedison were acquitted of charges of mass manslaughter and
environmental disaster by an Italian court this afternoon. The managers had been accused of mismanaging their VCM and
PVC production plants, causing cancer amongst PVC workers and environmental disaster in the Venice Lagoon.
“This is a dark day for environmental justice and for workers and communities around the world whose lives are blighted
by exposure to toxic pollution caused by PVC manufacturing and production. If industries are not held accountable for
their environmental crimes, they will continue to poison workers, communities and the environment around the world.
Today’s society should no longer tolerate this,” said Domitilla Senni, Executive Director of Greenpeace Italy, outside
the court room in Mestre, Venice.
Greenpeace activists held a silent protest outside the courtroom today out of respect for the hundreds of Enichem and
Montedison workers that have died or fallen ill as a result of the companies’ polluting practices (2). The case was
instigated by the workers when, in 1994, a retired PVC worker, Gabriele Bortolozzo, approached public prosecutor Felice
Casson in Venice accusing the petrochemical companies of negligence and complaining that many workers were falling ill.
Greenpeace analysis, published in 1995, revealed that sediment in the Venice Lagoon is amongst the most contaminated
with dioxins in the world (3). The report led to further investigations into the state of the industrial area of the
Lagoon. These resulted in charges of environmental damage and food contamination being leveled against the petrochemical
company managers. Dioxins had been released by Montedison and are still being poured into the Lagoon by Enichem and
other industries of Porto Marghera, that use chlorine as part of their manufacturing processes.
In December 1996, after Casson published a list of 257 victims of the industries and submitted another 116 names of
people who had already died as a consequence of the substances they had been working with, the managers were also
charged with manslaughter. Medical records, together with internal company notes, indicate that the companies knew the
risks their production processes posed as early as 1972. The trial started on 13th of March 1998.
“The Venice Lagoon is just one of many areas around the world that are being poisoned by irresponsible companies and,
sadly, these Italian workers represent just some of many that are suffering as a result (4). Despite today’s ruling,
Greenpeace will continue to expose the dangers posed by industries that use and produce chlorine and do whatever it can
to protect the environment and communities around the world. There is no place for dirty production in the 21st
century,” concluded Senni.
For further information see http://www.greenpeace.org/~toxics
Notes to Editors: Enichemand Montedison have both been involved with the manufacture of VCM (vinyl chloride monomer), a
key component in PVC plastic, in Porto Marghera. Greenpeacehas been campaigning against chemical pollution in the Venice
Lagoon for over a decade, since it first became concerned over dioxin levels in the area. The environmental organisation
acted as plaintiff in the trial, providing scientific information to the court. TheGreenpeace analysis can be found at
http://www.greenpeace.org/~toxics/reports/Venice.pd f Communitiesin Mossville, Louisiana, are also suffering high rates
of cancers and other pollution related diseases. The industrial corridor stretching from Baton Rouge south to New
Orleans along the Mississippi River, commonly known as "Cancer Alley," is home to more than 140 petrochemical producers
and users. Across the state, Lake Charles has a concentration of over 40 petrochemical-related facilities.