The operational phase of the JO DEMETER, a joint customs operation with the Guardia di Finanza aimed at repressing illegal cross-border trafficking of waste controlled pursuant to the Basel Convention, and illegal trade in substances that deplete the ozone layer (ODS) and F- GAS controlled under the Montreal Protocol, has been completed.
The Operation, coordinated by the World Customs Organization in collaboration with the China Customs Administration and the WCO Regional Intelligence Liaison Office for Asia/Pacific, saw the participation of a record number of 106 administrations customs. The customs control activities on the national territory, with the coordination of the Anti-Fraud Directorate in collaboration with the departments of the Guardia di Finanza, have made it possible to ascertain the following violations:
- 539.396 kg of waste consisting of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap, electronic equipment, motor vehicle components, packaging, textile materials and 472 pieces of waste consisting of car parts, bicycles, air conditioners and computers (in violation of the Basel Convention).
- 50.380 kg of HFCs (in violation of the Montreal Convention).
Senegal, Pakistan, Ghana, Thailand, Tunisia and Burkina Faso are the main countries to which the irregular goods were destined. The violations were detected by the customs offices and the departments of the Guardia di Finanza of Genoa, Turin, La Spezia, Milan, Ancona, Salerno and Bari. Italy then carried out enforcement, through the Customs Office of Bari and the II Group of the Guardia di Finanza of Bari, the most significant F-GAS seizure of the entire operation. The results achieved confirm the effectiveness of the collaboration between the Customs and Monopolies Agency and the Financial Police, renewed with the Memorandum of Understanding signed on 3 April 2023.
