GOVT TAKES OVER CAPRI POWER PLANT

GOVT TAKES OVER CAPRI POWER PLANT

(ANSA) - Rome, November 6 - The Italian government on Friday appointed a special commissioner to be in charge of the main power plant on the island of Capri.

The commissioner, electricity power grid company GSE's CEO Nando Pasquali, will have until the end of 2010 to restructure the facility and have it run on environmently-friendly fuels.

"The decision was made in accordance with the requests made by the Region of Campania and the people and local governments of Capri," the industry ministry said in a statement.

Revamping the power plant will be a temporary measure until future underwater power lines are in place to provide the island with electricity, after which the existing plant will be shut down.

A week ago some 700 Capri residents tied up road and pedestrian traffic on the idyllic island to protest against the plant which they claimed had been polluting the tourist resort for years.

The protestors had been authorised to stage a demonstration in the port town of Marina Grande, where the plant is located, but instead they headed up to the main town of Capri and attempted to enter a hotel which was hosting the annual meeting of the industrial employers association Confindustria.

Police kept the demonstrators away, taking three into custody, and the confrontation blocked the surrounding pedestrian walkways.

Capri's main power plant still runs on diesel fuel which residents say creates a health hazard and produces greasy fumes and a bad odor.

The protestors also claimed the plant violated national pollution norms and authorities have been ignoring the situation for years.