A Tuscan tussle: Mercury and Brunello

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UK Only Article: 
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Backwards, comrades!

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A Tuscan tussle

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A row over geothermal energy plants disturbs a holiday spot

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MONTENERO D’ORCIA

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Paradise potentially lost

Paradise potentially lost

THE view from the roof terrace of Giorgio Franci’s olive mill in Tuscany is sublime. It takes in the entire undulation of the Val d’Orcia. Just discernible to the east are the walls of Pienza, a UNESCO world heritage site. Scattered across the valley—a UNESCO world cultural landscape—are medieval castles, Etruscan hill villages and the vineyards that yield one of Italy’s great wines, Brunello di Montalcino.
If Mr Franci’s fears are confirmed, however, this glorious vista will soon be pockmarked with drilling rigs and, in a few years, dotted with geothermal power stations. The Val d’Orcia is the arena for an impassioned struggle in which the adversaries of conservationists are not …
Source: Utilities
A Tuscan tussle: Mercury and Brunello