Electricity is too expensive and, to keep costs down, the City Hall of Rivermaggiore, a municipality located in southern Sardinia, is closed for the long weekend of June 2, but the experiment could be replicated. Let me be clear, the essential services to citizens will still be guaranteed, but in the name of energy saving, lights and air conditioning, computers and printers are turned off. More or less like a family when it comes to making ends meet.
Savings policy, all off
And it is precisely by following this principle that the mayor Marco Corrias (former Tg5 journalist) has decided to apply the savings policy also in the town hall of the town that is a candidate to become a happy Village, that is, a widespread residence for the elderly. The first step in the rationalization of expenses. “The costs are becoming too high – says the mayor – and without state intervention, since we do not want to increase the personal income tax or cut services such as the canteen for children, we follow another path”. The occasion to implement the measure was the long weekend of 2 June. On Friday, the Town Hall kept its doors closed. The decision comes with an adopted ordinance made known with a note published on the institutional website of the local authority and then re-launched by the mayor himself on the social networks and on the service chat with which he communicates with the inhabitants, the direct line to find quick solutions to problems of the country which has just under 3 thousand inhabitants
The announcement after spending beyond forecasts
“Today – is the announcement of June 3 – the municipality remains closed (essential services are still insured) for an energy saving plan that we had to impose due to the enormous increase in bills in all buildings owned by the municipality over than in public lighting “. A choice of force majeure that does not spare the peripheral institutional structures. “It does not happen only in our country – says Corrias -, and the dilemma between cutting services or having the power cut off because you are unable to pay your bills is becoming very widespread among administrations that have no other resources to make up for. to similar emergencies “. To motivate the decision, the mayor indicates some data. “Compared to the expected expenditure, this year we are out of about 100 thousand euros, and the state reimburses us less than 20 – he argues -. An enormous amount of imbalance for a poor country like Fluminimaggiore, which we have to deal with as we do in any family: we save money by eliminating air conditioning as much as possible, turning off the lights during the day in offices, closing on certain dates. the entire activity of the offices “.
Photovoltaics are not enough, all summer long
The presence of photovoltaic panels on the roof of the municipal building and on the schools is not enough to compensate for the imbalance. «We would need new resources, which the state should make available for a real energy transformation plan. So far, however, only crumbs have arrived », explains the mayor. Not only that, there is also another aspect: “we presented a project as part of the Pnrr for energy efficiency, we have included the water purifier which consumes about 50 thousand euros a year, but since the purifier is not a palace we have been excluded ». The rationalization of the openings does not stop only on Friday, but will also continue for the next few weeks. «Certainly every Tuesday afternoon – argues Corrias – and then a whole series of dates. Unfortunately, without a change of line that I see difficult to implement, we just have to continue with the painful choice to close and cut some services “.