Liquid legacies. The intricate relationship between nature and human enterprises in the Agno Valley.

The central focus of this thesis is the Agno Valley, once a slow-paced Valley, a people Valley, now closer to a bustling industrial area, where it is crucial to define the interaction between humans – the polluters – and the surrounding environment – the polluted. The purpose is to provide an insightful examination of the Miteni case study, embodying one of the countless symbols of the failure of peaceful coexistence between the locals and the natural environment. The Agno Valley is now an ever-present subject of many international debates concerning water pollution due to the presence of persistent pollutants. Situated in the north-eastern corner of Italy, this area has experienced significant industrial development over the past decades, without specific regulations addressing chemical contamination of the various environmental compartments. A warning sign of troubles. The adopted approach assumes that the humans of the Agno Valley have profoundly interfered with its natural balance and authenticity and, despite the numerous warnings about the entity of the pollution caused by chemical substances distribution, little has been brought to practice, leading to relentless and persistent contamination, still taking place. The articulations of the theoretical assumptions are driven by existing and referenced knowledge as well as humanly analytical questions, like: how has the relationship between humans and nature evolved in sight of soil and water contamination scenarios, and how has the perception of this relationship changed over time? Will it be possible to settle a new equilibrium between two realms that appear so different and unbalanced, and yet are deeply interconnected?