Italian resort to fine smoking minors

CAPOLIVERI, Italy, Aug. 18 (UPI) -- A resort town on the Italian island of Elba has adopted an ordinance penalizing children under 16 who smoke or carry tobacco on municipal property.

The Capoliveri ordinance takes effect Aug. 25, the Italian news agency ANSA reported Tuesday. Minors who break the law could be fined 200 to 300 euros ($283 to $424).

''Our aim is not to repress, but to protect the health of our young people," Mayor Ruggero Barbetti told Il Tirreno, a newspaper on Elba. "The ordinance has an educational value. As far as we know, we are the first in Italy to take such an initiative.''

Capoliveri was also one of the first towns in Italy to fine those under 16 spotted drinking in public.

The town has a population of about 4,000 and a year-round police force of six. In summer, the population triples, and the number of police officers swells to 15.