Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights, II Section, 10 January 2012, Di Sarno and others v. Italy (Application No. 30765/08)

The Italian public authorities’ protracted inability to guarantee a proper functioning of the waste collection, treatment and disposal service had violated the applicants’ right to respect for their private and family life and their homes, in breach of Article 8 of the ECHR. However, in the Court’s opinion, the breach had been of a material nature. Conversely, as far as the procedural aspect of Article 8 was concerned, the Court held that the Convention had not been breached, insofar as the Italian authorities had carried out their duty to inform the persons affected (including the applicants) about the potential risks they were exposing themselves to by continuing to live in Campania.