Forever chemicals: Italy plant ex-directors face trial

Two former directors of a chemical plant in northern Italy are due to stand trial next month in a case over alleged PFAS contamination near the Syensqo site in Spinetta Marengo, near Alessandria.

Stefano Bigini, 66, and Andrea Diotto, 51, face a charge of involuntary environmental disaster. The trial is due to open on November 16, and they risk up to five years in jail if convicted.

Residents near the site have significant levels in their blood of PFAS, often called “forever chemicals”, which have been found in the air and local aquifers. A 2019 study by the Piedmont region's environmental protection agency, ARPA, found much higher-than-average levels of kidney, liver and bladder cancers locally.

Local activist Egio Spineto said blood tests have so far been limited to people living close to the plant, but said at least 90,000 people in surrounding areas could be affected.

PFAS are human-made chemicals used to repel heat, water and oil. They are known as forever chemicals because they can take decades to break down in the environment. Chronic exposure to low levels has been linked to liver damage, high cholesterol, reduced immune responses, low birth weights and several kinds of cancer.

The trial was sparked by a 2020 request by conservation group WWF for prosecutors to determine whether the contamination was historical or ongoing, WWF lawyer Vittorio Spallasso said. Claimants include Italy's environment ministry, the Piedmont region, environmental group Legambiente, WWF and 14 individuals.

Syensqo, a 2023 spin-off from Belgian chemical group Solvay, which bought the site in 2002, points to historical pollution at the plant, founded in 1905. The company said it had invested more than 300 million euros, or $335 million, in health, safety, modernisation and environmental protection initiatives at the site.

Syensqo also said it switched in 2012 from using PFOA, an older PFAS chemical and known carcinogen, to cC6O4, which it says is not toxic or carcinogenic. ARPA has detected the PFAS class of chemicals that Syensqo produces in groundwater and air.

Defence lawyer Riccardo Lucev said his clients made every effort to prevent contamination and had made significant progress in remediating pre-existing pollution at the site.

Campaigners say some scientific research warns of possible adverse effects from cC6O4 and argue more research is needed. Nicoletta Mensi, a member of the local “Ce l'ho nel sangue” association, said there has not yet been an official study into whether cC6O4 is causing health issues locally.

Syensqo says it uses cC6O4 to manufacture fluoropolymers, used in products from medical instruments to electric car batteries. As part of a 2021 commitment to phase out fluorosurfactants globally, it says it will largely stop using cC6O4 at the Spinetta Marengo plant by the end of this year.

Mensi said the case has divided the local community because the company employs hundreds of people and pays well. Spineto accused Syensqo of hiding behind trade secrecy and said activists feared cC6O4 could be replaced by another compound whose profile is not available for environmental testing.