Punctured Pipe Spills Oil In Venetian Lagoon

Oil spilled from a broken pipeline in the Venetian lagoon Saturday, but authorities said the city’s canals were in no danger of being polluted.

The spill from a pipeline owned by the Italian state oil company AGIP, was first noticed on Friday. Officials estimated that a total of three tons of oil had leaked into the lagoon at the northeast end of the Adriatic. About 12 percent of the spill had been cleaned up by Saturday afternoon.

Venice Mayor Massimo Cacciari said that the pipe was accidentally slit during a dredging operation.

The lagoon is made of numerous islets and islands, including those forming the city of Venice.