The land of poplars

According to the myth, Phaeton, to demonstrate his divine descent, begged his father to let him drive the chariot of the Sun, but due to his inexperience, he lost control, the horses became enraged and ran madly across the celestial vault: first they rose too high, burning a stretch of the sky that became the Milky Way, then they came down too close to the earth, devastating it. The men asked for help from Zeus who intervened and, enraged, hurled a thunderbolt at Phaeton, who fell at the mouth of the river Eridanus, in our great Po. His sisters, the Eliades, frightened, cried abundant tears which were transformed by the gods into poplars whitish.

One of the characteristic features of the Po Valley is the presence of cultivated woods and long rows of poplars which interrupt the monotony of the countryside. Today, however, the face of the territory is rapidly changing and one of the most characterizing elements, the poplar, is becoming a rarity. The reasons for this transformation are to be found in the laws of the market. If the plain becomes an immense wasteland, the environment and air quality will also be affected.
Is it always man and above all the economy that dictates the law? And above all, is what is economically convenient truly advantageous for man?

Verona, 2013