The Italian army has been sent to Naples to begin shifting mountains of rubbish after more than two weeks of a collection crisis. Protesters angered at plans to revive a landfill in their neighbourhood clashed with police who tried to reopen the site so refuse that has piled up on the city's streets can be dumped there.

Hundreds of trash piles have been set alight by residents, prompting fears of high levels of cancer-causing dioxin emissions. Problems with refuse disposal in Italy's southern region of Campania have been around for years.

In spite of efforts by local authorities and the appointment of a succession of so-called "Garbage Czars2, the mountain of rubbish just keeps growing.

The Camorra, the Naples brand of the Italian Mafia, is heavily involved in the transport and disposal of waste.

Local authorities say it has benefited from the continuing crisis and may have actively tried to prolong it.