Cisambiente: recycling and innovation for the green economy sector
Notarangelo: ‘The biomethane plant is a key piece of infrastructure for competitiveness’
Recycling, energy, raw materials, new technologies. The Ecoross Biomethane Park in Calabria – which hosted the 2026 General Assembly of Cisambiente Confindustria – is a treasure trove of the green economy, highlighting a sector in constant evolution: waste becoming a strategic resource is a prime example of the circular economy in action. And this is particularly true here, in the northern part of the Ionian province of Cosenza, in the industrial area of Schiavonea, in the town of Corigliano Rossano: waste is transformed into a valuable resource for the production of biomethane. An open, wide-ranging discussion on the environmental industry, involving institutions, businesses and experts, covering everything from biofuels to secondary solid fuel (CSS) and new energy carriers such as hydrogen. The debate covered the entire supply chain, focusing on the sector’s prospects, energy policies and public resources.
Focus on the green transition, renewables, incentives and investment
The development of renewable energy and the incentive scheme, the virtuous cycle of organic waste and the ecological and energy transition, the impact of investment: these topics were discussed by Senator Roberta Toffanin, adviser to the Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin – who took part in the event via a video message – and a member of the board of directors of GSE (Gestore dei servizi energetici), Massimo Centemero, Director-General of the Italian Composting Consortium, and Antonello Colosimo, Chair of the Public Bodies Audit Section of the Court of Auditors.
State-of-the-art facilities as new energy infrastructure
Joining them, with the aim of promoting a new environmental culture through innovation, sustainability and community engagement, were Eugenio Guarascio, regional president of Cisambiente Calabria; Lucia Leonessi, director-general of Cisambiente Confindustria; and president Donato Notarangelo. “The circular economy and the energy transition cannot be achieved through solar panels and wind turbines alone. This biomethane plant, where we have gathered today, is a strategic piece of infrastructure that offers prospects for our country’s competitiveness,” said Notarangelo.
Leonessi: the key role of technology and integrated solutions
“We are focusing on innovation, expertise and strategic planning to capitalise on all the opportunities affecting the country’s energy and production systems,” emphasised Lucia Leonessi. “The risk in Italia is that we will continue to incinerate waste without recovering energy from it. The technologies and integrated solutions adopted by Italian environmental industry players play a key role. But we need incentives and a comprehensive infrastructure plan.”
At the Ecoross Biomethane Park: a fully circular economy
With 3 MW of solar power for self-consumption, water recycling, more than 12,000 square metres of green spaces featuring 2,000 planted species, educational trails and gardens, vegetable gardens, and creative reuse projects, “this park, where organic waste is transformed into biomethane and high-quality compost whilst capturing CO₂, is a concrete embodiment of our vision of the circular economy”, said entrepreneur Walter Pulignano, general councillor of Cisambiente Confindustria and sole director of Ecoross.
