It is an obvious but sincere banality, but it must be said: Operation Landscape! finally ended with a great success! That is, both the dismantling of the three anemometers that fifteen years ago had been installed between the plain of La Monna and the first slopes of Monte Cavallo, preparatory to a large wind power plant along the crest of the so-called large mountain of Cesima, in Municipality of Mignano Monte Lungo (Caserta), operated voluntarily by the AIW last 11 October, both the event that publicly presented it together with the newly designated Monte Cesima Wilderness Area, held in the town hall of Mignano, were a success.
With this press release theAssociation Italian for Wilderness he wants to thank all those who have contributed and participated in it, from the national associations Italia Nostra e Federnature who also wanted to do it with modest financial help, to those who have ideally joined the initiative, such as the Friends of the Earth, National Landscape Committee (almost a symbolic closure of its commitment which arose with the appearance in Italy of the first wind projects, as claimed by one of its founders); but also with the least moral adhesion of Mountain Wilderness, of the association Let's save the bear and Superintendence for Environmental and Landscape Heritage of Caserta.
It was the first time that a real initiative of rewilding, or rather the restoration of an environmental state in an intact wild area that had been defaced with the installation of large and showy anemometers; this too is a symbol, almost representing the true dream of many people sensitive to the beauty of the landscapes, that is to see those "eco monsters" that are many wind farms fall to the ground (in the face of clean and ecological energy!). But, you know, it is with small things that big dreams begin!
The Italian Association for Wilderness is also grateful to all those people who represent the aforementioned Associations and who have come to Mignano Monte Lungo to reiterate their agreement, and further criticize the wind program which, unfortunately, still does not see the deadline by the Government (with the risk that other unfortunate incentives will re-ignite the program that recently had slowed down), to Oreste Rutigliano, a tireless opponent of these projects and one of the founders of the aforementioned Committee, a Giuseppe Rossi, Already President of the Gran Sasso-Laga and Abruzzo-Lazio-Molise National Parks which with his presence represented the commitment of the Federnatura, a Maria Rosaria Iacono, President of the Caserta section of Italia Nostra representing its national president. And to those who have decided to offer their financial contribution in support of this important concrete initiative of conservation and defense of the environment; financial commitment which, it must be said, it was pretty much all supported by the AIW and, therefore, by those who joined it contributed to that their money was not spent only on bureaucratic administrative matters as, unfortunately, too often happens also for many idealistic and social initiatives of various ONLUS and NGOs.
Thanks also to the moral support of Carlo Ripa of Meana who, unable to participate due to physical problems due to his age, nevertheless required to communicate his full participation and sharing of the initiative; to the President of the Lazio Region Nicola Zingaretti and to the former President of the Lazio Regional Council Mario Abbruzzese; both formally apologized for the commitments that prevented them from being physically present.
Finally, a deep and heartfelt thanks to Vittorio Sgarbi for having wanted to seal with his authoritative and lively presence, as Honorary President of the AIW, both the dismantling of the anemometers, and, and in particular, the appreciation he highlighted for the choice made by the Municipality of Mignano Monte Lungo which, urged by the AIW, replacing the State in deciding to preserve its environmental and landscape heritage, understood and shared the liberal policy of the AIW aimed at applying the Wilderness Conservation Concept - although he is devoid of the historical knowledge that led to this great democratic IDEA in America.
To conclude, again a big THANK YOU to the TRUE creator of this initiative, Raffale Cortellessa, Mignanese who from the beginning led the alliance against wind projects that wanted to wreak havoc on "his" mountain, managing to convince the current municipal administration of Mignano, which, after so many years, finally decided to abandon the idea of future wind projects and instead aim at the defense of the landscape and tourism, for the enhancement of one's own country, also having the ancient Castle of the fiefdom of the well-known leader Ettore Fieramosca and preserving the landscape that dominates it, namely Monte Cesima with the redesignation of that Wilderness Area through which a previous administration had already had the foresight to defend the mountain with a formal act that today belongs to the history of Italian environmentalism, and also European, having laid the foundations of that was there first Italian and also European Wilderness Area of municipal designation.
We are sure that from today, theReserved Monte Cesima Wilderness will rise to the symbol of a landscape defense but also naturalistic (for the great biodiversity values present on the mountain), rural (for a world that is always disappearing and that the Wilderness Area helps to preserve), historical (for the links to the history that many have highlighted during the event, from facts related to the unification of Italy to its liberation during the last world war, with the breaking of the front on that Monte Lungo at the foot of Monte Cesima with the sacrifice of many young soldiers, both foreigners and Italians whose remains of many of them still rest in the memorial cemetery in front of Monte Cesima) and also architectural and urban planning (with the restoration of the ancient castle), and tourism, as a last and wise choice for a future of social development and economical compatible.
Murialdo, 12 November 2015