1 in 3 wildfires in nature reserves, parks-Legambiente (2)

(ANSA) - Rome, August 14 - Almost a third of Italian areas consumed by wildfires this year has been in nature reserves and national parks, the Legambiente environmentalist group said Monday. Some 35,000 hectares of 'protected' flora and fauna zones have been destroyed by the fires, often started by the mafia and other arsonists, it said. Sicily, Campania and Calabria are the worst-hit regions, it said. Fires have ravaged Italy this summer, most of them the work of the so-called eco-mafia or other arsonists, including firefighters looking to create work for themselves.