100 years ago, Lago d’Orta was one of the most unspoiled lakes in Europe. Fish were plentiful. The water was clean and fresh.
Half a century later, and Lago d’Orta was fast becoming a dead zone. An environmental catastrophe caused by industrial pollution. No fish lived in the acid waters. Drinking water was dangerously contaminated by heavy metals. Even the locals refused to swim there.
Fast-forward to the 1980s, and Lago d’Orta had become the the largest acidified deep lake in the world. A far-sighted team of Italian and international scientists formed an ambitious plan: to clean up the lake. For nearly 20 years they dumped hundreds of tonnes of limestone to neutralise the acid. At the same time, new laws and changing attitudes forced the factories to clean up. By 2000, Lago d’Orta was reborn – as one of the most pristine lakes in Europe.

ORTA RELOADED is an inspirational story of paradise lost and regained. Of how science, technology and willpower can turn disaster into triumph. A story of hope, in a world faced with environmental catastrophe