Naples' trash crisis tied to mob, toxic waste

"Expert: Organized crime gets garbage contracts, then mixes in pollutants

updated 10:12 a.m. MT, Wed., Jan. 9, 2008

ROME - The Italian government's plan to resolve Naples' garbage crisis may clear trash temporarily, but mafia control of waste disposal and politicians' inability to guarantee safe dumps means the problem will return, a noted expert on organized crime said Wednesday...

... But Roberto Saviano, a writer and expert on the Neapolitan organized crime syndicate, the Camorra, said such measures do not address the underlying causes of the problem: the mob and politicians who are powerless to fight it."....

"Saviano said the Camorra controls the entire cycle of garbage disposal in Campania, running the dumps, waste transport companies and other businesses, raking in what anti-mafia prosecutors estimate is $880 million per year.".......

...."Saviano said Camorra-run companies routinely win contracts to dispose of toxic waste from northern Italian industries by underbidding competitors, then dispose of it illegally and untreated in Campania's rivers and dumps. Camorra-run companies also mix toxic waste with other materials and resell it as fertilizer, he said."...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22573281/

City New Action in Asarco Legal Battle

City starting new legal battle to keep Asarco closed
"El Paso Times - El Paso,TX,USA
By David Crowder / El Paso Times The city of El Paso is starting a second legal action in its battle to keep Asarco from reopening. ..."

"by Rene Leon   City Has Takes New Action in Asarco Legal Battle

The City Council voted on Tuesday to take a new step in its legal fight to keep Asarco closed, but Asarco claims it is just part of an "anti-business" environment.

Posted on January 8, 2008

The El Paso City Council on Tuesday took a new move in its legal battle against the possible reopening of Asarco.

With a unanimous vote, the council moved to allow the city’s outside counsel to file a petition calling for the revocation of the smelter’s air emissions permit issued by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, or TCEQ...."