BRUSSELS. Consuming less energy can and will be done. For the sake of themselves and their purchasing power first and foremost. The expensive bills that grip the families of all Europe, sees in the Italians the attention to their pockets. A reaction that might seem almost natural in the face of the increase in the cost of heating supplies and the daily operation of one’s home. Too bad the newly published Eurobarometer survey is dedicated to the perception of sustainable transition. Of this, in the response of the Italians, there is little trace. Among those who give purely economic reasons (23%) and those who indicate reasons “mainly economic” (35%), practically six out of ten Italians (58%) say they are willing to consume less for the simple question of increasingly unsustainable tariffs. In the face of crazy energy prices, therefore, climate change cannot stand comparison and the high bills prevail over the “green” soul.
An orientation, that of men and women of the boot, which is confirmed even more in the face of the possibility of producing an extra economic effort to accelerate the green transition desired by Europe and signed by the country. A specific request suggests a willingness to pay extra for energy to speed up the EU’s sustainability agenda. Three quarters of respondents (73%) answered “no”. It probably affects an already marked rise in energy prices, and therefore paying even more would be unthinkable because it is even less feasible, but certainly Italians put aside the climate to make ends meet, given that the rise in electricity and gas prices it is a cause for concern for everyone (95% of the answers on this matter).
However, the will to change habits within friendly walls is not lacking. There is a great deal of confidence that Italians will know how to consume less and better, and thus set a good example for the rest of Europe (conviction expressed by 69% of those interviewed), even if it will be necessary to get busy. Italy, Eurobarometer notes, with a figure of 42% “is the only country in which the majority evaluates its energy consumption as” rather high “compared to others in its own country”, to which must be added another small slice of the population (6%) that admits to recording a “very high” overall average consumption. The position of pensioners and unemployed is different. These two categories declare that they consume little, and for obvious reasons: few and limited economic resources. From north to south you risk having a hard time, and you are ready to cut your bill so as not to stay in the bill.