Riserva Naturale Orientata
Saline di Priolo

The Oriented Nature Reserve (RNO) “Saltflats of Priolo” (Riserva Naturale Orientata Saline di Priolo) was founded with Ordinance no. 807/44 on the 28th December in 2000 (Codice EUAP 1099) and was entrusted to the LIPU (Italian League for the Protection of Birds). It was created in order to “protect the system of basins which make up the saltflats, which host Phragmites and Salicornites and which together with the true wetland area, attract a rich variety of migratory and resident avian fauna.”

The protected area is found in Eastern Sicily in the area of the town of Priolo Gargallo, roughly 4 kms south of Siracusa (SR). Because of the high concentration of industry and the social context, the area in which the nature reserve lies is often referred to as a “depressed area”,  a “high crime area” and also an “area with a high risk of serious accidents”, according to Law 334/99 (Legge Seveso). Because of the high concentration of industries and their activities over past decades, the nature reserve is part of a de-pollution plan promoted by the Ministry for the Environment and lies within the borders of polluted sites of national interest (SIN) with the obligation by law to reclaim these areas.

The protected area is also a Natura 2000 site, cod. ITA 090013. Recently the area, with the publication of the “Seventh updated list of sites of community importance for the Mediterranean biogeographical region” in the Official Journal of the EU (OJEU) of 21/12/2013, was the subject of an enlargement plan which extended the area of the Natura 2000 site from 50 hectares to over 232 hectares, including many priority habitats located to the south of the area, and above all the Magnisi Peninsula.