Implementing a governance model for situations of environmental contamination, in particular from emerging pollutants, is the main objective of LIFE PHOENIX, a project that take up the need for a holistic approach in addressing issues with an impact on human health. Governance, and therefore the management of a problematic situation, brings with it concepts such as risk analysis and the planning of surveillance and controls. It is a clear methodology based on an inter-institutional and multidisciplinary approach relating to the Environment and Health issues.

The governance model implemented with the LIFE PHOENIX project supported the goal of equipping the Veneto Region with an Environment and Health Commission. This working group, set up by a provision of the Council, has as its components all the managers of the regional structures with expertise on environment and health issues, together with the representatives of the Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Protection (ARPA). The worktable also provides for the participation of other local bodies and agencies involved in these issues.

In its action, the Environment and Health Commission is supported by a Technical-Scientific Committee (a multidisciplinary panel of experts from academies and research centers of regional and national level) which, on the basis of its own knowledge and backed by the innovative systems designed within LIFE PHOENIX, like the data warehouse or the predictive transport model of pollutants, provides the Commission with possible solutions to mitigate the risk and to manage environmental contamination. At the end of the assessments, the Environment and Health Commission reports to policy makers on the opportunity of adopting certain technical solutions in order to deal with the emergency.

The model plays its challenge not only on a timely and effective management of a contamination event, taking into consideration the regional territory through an accurate risk analysis, but also on the prevention of possible pollution events, evaluating the potential danger through the systematic monitoring of some sentinel indicators.

Substantiating itself in the concept of "Environment and Health Network", this model is ideally close to some methodologies already expected in the European context, which will soon have to be implemented by the Member States. An example is the Water Safety Plan (WSP), which represents an innovative approach based on risk analysis, aimed at ensuring the safety of drinking water supply systems. The WSPs were introduced into national law with the Decree of the Ministry of Health of 14 June 2017, which received the EU Directive 2015/1787.

Finally, the Next Generation EU and Green Deal programmes are also increasingly stimulating European countries to create networks in the Environment and Health areas, following the logic of sharing environmental and health data available to local and central structures competent on these issues.