Diesel spill between Villar Dora and Almese
Date of the event:
The diesel spill between Villar Dora and Almese is an environmental pollution incident that occurred in a shared irrigation channel (bealera) along the former state road 24, on the border between the two municipalities in the Susa Valley. The release of diesel into the channel, used to irrigate fields, required the intervention of firefighters, Arpa Piemonte (the regional environmental protection agency) and the forestry Carabinieri to secure the waterway.
The spill and the report
Diesel appeared in the water of the shared channel starting Sunday 8 November 2026. According to Valsusa Oggi, the report came in early morning from the Finder company in Almese, in front of which the channel runs: the watchman noticed diesel in the water and called 112 [2]. Some residents said they had already noticed a strong smell of diesel the previous evening [2].
The response
On the morning of Monday 9 November, firefighters from the provincial command's chemical and biological risk unit (NBCR), Arpa Piemonte technicians carrying out surveys, and the forestry Carabinieri intervened [1][2]. To locate the source of the spill, responders had to work their way up the entire stretch of the channel, from the Finder plant in Almese to Villar Dora, moving by vehicle where possible and then on foot [2]. According to initial, as yet unconfirmed, information, the diesel came from a private home, possibly due to a damaged tank [2]. Almese's mayor, Andrea Cavaliere, said the spill occurred within the municipal territory of Villar Dora but that its effects also spread into Almese, and that checks had traced the source to a diesel tank [1].
Securing the site and consequences
Almese's mayor specified that there is no effect on drinking water, since the abstraction points do not coincide with the watercourses affected by the spill, namely the shared irrigation channel used to water the fields [1]. Arpa Piemonte oversaw the operations to stop the diesel leak and secure the irrigation channel, assisted by a specialist firm [1]. Firefighters closed the irrigation channel to prevent the pollution from spreading further [1]. According to TorinoToday, the securing operations were still under way at the time of publication, while according to Valsusa Oggi they should by then be over; for the actual clean-up, it is normally Arpa Piemonte that calls in specialist private firms [1][2].
Sources
- TorinoToday — 9 November 2026
- Valsusa Oggi — 9 November 2026