The Lambro ( or ''Lambar'' ) is a river of
Lombardy
The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...
, northern Italy, a left tributary of the
Po.
The Lambro rises from the
Monte San Primo, elevation , near the
Ghisallo, in the
province of Como
The province of Como (; Comasco dialect, Comasco: ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Lombardy region of Italy. It borders the Switzerland, Swiss cantons of Ticino and Grisons, Grigioni to the north, the Italian provinces of Province of ...
, not far from
Lake Como
Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...
. After
Magreglio it flows through the
Valassina and the ''comuni'' of
Asso
Asso ( Valassinese ) is an Italian ''comune'' in the province of Como, in Lombardy, Italy. It has 3,524 citizens and an area of , with a density of .
Main sights
Significant historic buildings are:
* the castle, built in the 12th century; nowada ...
,
Ponte Lambro and
Erba, entering
Lake Pusiano with the name of ''Lambrone''. The Lambro passes through
Brianza reaching
Monza
Monza (, ; ; , locally ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the Lambro, River Lambro, a tributary of the Po (river), River Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the province of Mo ...
and crossing its famous park (where king
Umberto I was assassinated by
Gaetano Bresci) in two branches which join again before the river passes through the eastern part of
Milan
Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
. At
Melegnano it receives the waters of the Vettabbia and, at
Sant'Angelo Lodigiano, those of its main tributary, the Lambro meridionale ("Southern Lambro"), almost doubling its
discharge. The Lambro flows into the Po near
Orio Litta.
At the average discharge of the Lambro is relatively small, but it can be occasionally boosted to 40 m
3/s or more by the Milanese water drains and dangerous floods are frequent in the rainy seasons.
The name Lambro was used for a popular three-wheeler commercial transport vehicle produced by Milanese automaker
Innocenti, which also made the
Lambretta
Lambretta () was a brand of motor scooters, manufactured in Milan, Italy, by Innocenti.
The name is derived from the word Lambrate, the suburb of Milan named after the river Lambro which flows through the area, and where the factory was locat ...
motor scooters
A scooter (motor scooter) is a motorcycle with an underbone or step-through frame, a seat, a transmission that shifts without the operator having to operate a clutch lever, a platform for their feet, and with a method of operation that emph ...
.
Etymology
According to
Pokorny's
Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch
The ''Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch'' (''IEW''; "Indo-European Etymological Dictionary") was published in 1959 by the Austrian-Czech comparative linguist and Celtic languages expert Julius Pokorny. It is an updated and slimmed-down ...
(''Indo-European Etymological Dictionary'')
1132 (''legʷh-'') ''Lambrus'' corresponds to Greek ἐλαφρός, meaning 'light (in weight), quick, nimble' ('leicht, flink' in German) and is related to
Illyrian ''lembus'' (*''lengʷho-s'') 'light vehicle' ('leichtes Fahrzeug' in German), whence also Greek λέμβος. Pokorny cites
Krahe, ''Gymnasium'' 59 (1952), p. 79.
Pollution
Lambro drains a very densely populated and heavily industrialized zone, including a significant portion of the
Milan metropolitan area
The Milan metropolitan area, also known as Grande Milano ("Greater Milan"), is the largest metropolitan area in Italy and the List of metropolitan areas by population, 54th largest in the world.
Definition
Given the absence of an official ...
with a population of more than 3,000,000. Before the construction of a
treatment plant in 2002, almost all of the sewage from the city of
Milan
Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
flowed untreated into the river, as well as industrial sewages.
Saboteur oil spill
Despite the implementation of sewage treatment, overall water quality remained poor, until the major disaster of 23 February 2010, when unknown criminals poured into the river, near
Villasanta, the contents of several silos containing oil and other
hydrocarbons
In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and hydrophobic; their odor is usually faint, and may b ...
, all belonging to a company named "Lombardia Petroli". This oily mass, estimated at over , followed the entire length of the river, despite both local authorities and
civil defence
Civil defense or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from human-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency management: prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, ...
's efforts in order to stop the flow, then reached Po river. This disaster caused considerable damage to wildlife and vegetation, both in Lambro and in Po, and its effects will be evident for many years afterwards, making it one of the worst environmental crises in recent history in Italy.
[NICOLE WINFIELD]
"Lambro River Oil Spill May Create 'Ecological Disaster' In Italy"
''Huffington Post'', 2010-02-24
References
{{Reflist
Rivers of Italy
Rivers of the Province of Como
Rivers of the Province of Lecco
Rivers of the Province of Monza and Brianza
Rivers of the Metropolitan City of Milan
Rivers of the Province of Lodi
Rivers of the Province of Pavia