Veneto declares war on blue crabs

(ANSA) - ROME, AUG 16 - Veneto in northern Italy has declared war on blue crabs, which are reportedly wrecking havoc on the local clam population in the Po delta area.
    Veneto governor Luca Zaia showed reporters two live specimens during a press conference on Wednesday, claiming that the crustaceans "break everything and cause disasters".
    326 tonnes of the aggressive invading species, originally from the western Atlantic, have already been harvested in Veneto this year, including 84 tonnes in Scardovari (Rovigo) and 29 tonnes in Pila just in August.
    "The region has earmarked 80,000 euros for initial studies," said Zaia, adding that the government has also allocated "a good 3 million euros" to combat the invasion.
    "We declared a state of emergency on 24 July and have requested a national state of emergency," he continued.
    Zaia also announced that from Thursday the regional environmental agency Arpav and Veneto Agricoltura would begin setting 300 traps in order to monitor the distribution and spread of the blue crab population. (ANSA).