The government and the region have produced an early cost estimate for restoring roads and railroads. Coldiretti: "Compromised agriculture worth 1.5 billion per year"
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| Italy flood damages |
It is still too early to assess the extent of the flood damage in Italian state Emilia-Romagna. However, preliminary estimates from the Region and the national government, as well as indications from the producing sectors, indicate that the bill will be quite high.
The current focus is on infrastructure. The first official estimate was presented on the occasion of a meeting in the prefecture of Bologna between the governor Stefano Bonaccini and the ministers Matteo Salvini and Matteo Piantedosi: around 620 million in infrastructure damage, including roads and railroads. It is a preliminary estimate, quite brief, given that most of the municipal road system is absent.
Railways and Roads
According to a notice from the Region, the damage to the road infrastructure in the metropolitan city of Bologna would amount to 110 million euros. For the province of Forl-Cesena, the figure is 95 million, to which are added 42.5 million in Cesena, 2-3 million in Bertinoro, and 1.7 million in Galeata for municipal roads alone. An early estimate in the Ravenna area varies between 120 and 150 million euros. There are currently 8 million euros in damages in the Rimini region, to which must be added 1 million euros for the municipal road system in Rimini, 700 thousand euros in Maiolo, and 4 million euros in Sant'Agata Feltria.
In terms of the Anas-responsible portion (state highways), the current estimate is 100 million euros in damages. Then there's the railways as a whole, with a total damage projection of 105 million at the moment, 90 of which is for Rfi infrastructure and 15 for Fer infrastructure.
''It is a very partial figure because much of the municipal road system is still lacking,'' councilor Andrea Corsini adds. ''The estimate for the provincial one is still unfinished, and verification will begin in the coming days. Undoubtedly, significant government resources will be required to quickly restore access and link routes to steep and Apennine communities, beginning with those sections and entirely isolated settlements. We need the government, not just for the massive resources required, but also for specific instruments and rules to expedite the reconstruction process,'' ends the councilor.
Agricultural damage
Aside from the matter of feasibility, there is the huge harm done to families and productive activity. "This year, at least 400 million kilos of wheat were lost in flooded land, where about a third of the national soft wheat is obtained," warned Coldiretti, "while the fruit harvest will be compromised for the next four or five years because the water left in the orchards has suffocated the roots of the trees until they rot, necessitating the need to explant and then replant entire plantations."
The flood "devastated over 5,000 farms and farms in Romagna, one of the most agricultural areas in the country with a gross salable production of around 1.5 billion euros a year, not counting the supply chain where it works an avant-garde private and cooperative induced in the food processing and distribution strongly affected," according to the organization. In addition, "the damages to structures such as orchards, greenhouses, rural buildings, stables, machinery and equipment lost, without counting the need to reclaim land and restore roads in rural areas where landslides multiply and landslides" Crop annihilation, which "risks a heavy burden on companies' balance sheets but also on the environment."
The flood has affected more than just the agri-food industry. Large firms, such as Marcegaglia of Ravenna, have had to halt manufacturing. Without forgetting tourism, which has already begun to suffer with cancellations, even if the coastline area, hotels, and beaches have been comparatively spared, and a communication campaign with Enit and the government is being discussed. Finally, Ansa mentions landslides and landslides that have damaged ancient gardens and palaces, infiltrations in places like the Malatesta Library in Cesena, and water that has threatened the pottery of Faenza and Casa Fellini in Gambit.