This paper tries to contribute to the stabilization of the notion of sacrifice zone from an environmental point of view. Born and developed in the context of studies on environmental justice, this notion is used discontinuously, particularly in the United States where it designates territories, of varying size, undergoing, or having suffered, environmental degradation due to activities such as industry, extraction, or hazardous waste. After having carried out a synthetic inventory of the various works which have dealt, directly or indirectly, with the question of environmental sacrifice, the text will seek to propose its application in the Euro-Mediterranean context through the analysis of a specific case study: the petrochemical site of Syracuse (Italy). From 1949 this territory became one of the main European petrochemical sites. However, the absence of planning, the loopholes in the legislation on the protection of health and the environment and a very questionable economic and political management, have given rise to a real emergency on the health and environmental level. This case study not only testifies to the relevance of environmental sacrifice in a non-American context, but also allows us to grasp the cross-cutting potential of a key notion to better reflect on the relationship between societies and the environment in the context of the Anthropocene.