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Marble quarries shut over environment plan firms claim will cost 10,000 jobs Marble quarries shut over environment plan firms claim will cost 10,000 jobs
(about 1 hour later)
Companies hewing marble once favoured by Michelangelo from the mountains of northern Tuscany have halted work for two days in a clash between the interests of industry and art and those of the environment and countryside.Companies hewing marble once favoured by Michelangelo from the mountains of northern Tuscany have halted work for two days in a clash between the interests of industry and art and those of the environment and countryside.
The lockout, which sees workers barred from the quarries run by 150 firms until Wednesday, is the latest move in a passionate dispute over a new regional land-use plan, which it is claimed will bankrupt dozens of companies and cost around 10,000 jobs. The lockout, in which workers are barred from the quarries run by 150 firms until Wednesday, is the latest move in a passionate dispute over a new regional land-use plan, which it is claimed will bankrupt dozens of companies and cost about10,000 jobs.
The Tuscan regional government is due to give its final approval to the plan this week. In a bid to counter the marble lobby – eight employers' associations and workers' co-operatives – environmentalists will submit a petition signed by some 100,000 people to the regional governor.The Tuscan regional government is due to give its final approval to the plan this week. In a bid to counter the marble lobby – eight employers' associations and workers' co-operatives – environmentalists will submit a petition signed by some 100,000 people to the regional governor.
The quarries of the Apuan Alps date from classical times. Some still bear traces left by Roman artisans and engineers. It was in the foothills of the mountains, above the town of Pietrasanta, that Michelangelo laboured for months to extract blocks of marble white and sheer enough for his masterpieces.The quarries of the Apuan Alps date from classical times. Some still bear traces left by Roman artisans and engineers. It was in the foothills of the mountains, above the town of Pietrasanta, that Michelangelo laboured for months to extract blocks of marble white and sheer enough for his masterpieces.
But quarrying has also left vast scars on an otherwise beautiful landscape. In some cases, entire peaks have been ripped away. The disposal of quarry waste pollutes springs and streams.But quarrying has also left vast scars on an otherwise beautiful landscape. In some cases, entire peaks have been ripped away. The disposal of quarry waste pollutes springs and streams.
The quarriers' case was not helped earlier this month when the regional environmental protection agency disclosed that it had given a clean bill of health to only one of 13 marble sites inspected over the previous two years: the others were either fined or recommended for criminal prosecution, mainly because of waste management infractions.The quarriers' case was not helped earlier this month when the regional environmental protection agency disclosed that it had given a clean bill of health to only one of 13 marble sites inspected over the previous two years: the others were either fined or recommended for criminal prosecution, mainly because of waste management infractions.
The new plan would ban quarrying within the regional nature reserve, which covers much of the area closest to Pietrasanta. Employers claim that 48 quarries would have to close with the direct loss of some 5,000 jobs. The new plan would ban quarrying within the regional nature reserve, which covers much of the area closest to Pietrasanta. Employers claim that 48 quarries would have to close with the direct loss of about 5,000 jobs.
But Paolo Carli, president of the local masonry section of the employers' union, Confindustria, told the Guardian that at least as many jobs would also be lost indirectly. "There are entire communities in this area that live off marble quarrying," he said. But Paolo Carli, president of the local masonry section of the employers' group, Confindustria, told the Guardian that at least as many jobs would also be lost indirectly. "There are entire communities in this area that live off marble quarrying," he said.
He added that the quarry owners and operators feared the plan was only a first step. "The philosophy behind the plan is quite clearly that the quarries should not exist at all and that worries us a very great deal."He added that the quarry owners and operators feared the plan was only a first step. "The philosophy behind the plan is quite clearly that the quarries should not exist at all and that worries us a very great deal."
He said: "The plan does not take account of the man-made impact on the landscape. The marble quarries are now a part of the countryside; they are a part of Tuscany."He said: "The plan does not take account of the man-made impact on the landscape. The marble quarries are now a part of the countryside; they are a part of Tuscany."
Several hundred companies operate in the sector throughout the region. A spokeswoman for the employers said around 150 had agreed to suspend all activity on Monday and Tuesday and bar workers from entering their quarries. A representative of the CGIL, Italy's biggest trade union federation, called the lockout "anti-democratic and contemptuous of the rights of workers". Several hundred companies operate in the sector throughout the region. A spokeswoman for the employers said around 150 had agreed to suspend all activity on Monday and Tuesday and bar workers from entering their quarries. A representative of the CGIL, Italy's biggest trade union federation, called the lockout "anti-democratic and contemptuous of the rights of workers".