On Via Catalani, the bags are piled next to the trash can, as if that were their proper place. It's not. On Via Eroi d'Italia, in Pirri, there are more, one ripped open, with bottles and food scraps scattered across the asphalt. On Via San Giovanni, on the street corner, yet another pile of bags awaits others to clean up.
It's the geography of incivility that runs through Cagliari: Sant'Elia, Is Mirrionis, San Benedetto, Pirri, the Marina. There's always someone who decides that the sidewalk, a flowerbed, or the space around a trash can become their garbage can. Often, the first bag is enough to give the green light to the others. One becomes two, then five, until a street corner becomes a small landfill.
It's not just a problem of degradation. It's also a problem of hygiene and public health. Often, abandoned bags are opened by animals, the contents spilling everywhere, and the heat does the rest.
The opposition
"When the mayor says Cagliari is cleaner," a few days ago, "I wonder what city he's looking at, because what we see every day is a different one: abandoned bags, street bins used as household waste containers, and situations of degradation that continue to recur in various neighborhoods," denounces Giuseppe Farris, CiviCa 2024.
"Uncivilized people must be identified and punished, of course, but the administration can't continue to use them as an excuse," says Roberto Mura of Alleanza Sardegna. "This city waste collection and cleaning system, established by this administration nine years ago, immediately showed clear limitations," he adds.
"The city remains dirty," emphasizes Forza Italia's Edoardo Tocco. "The soil sanitation service isn't delivering the expected results, and I doubt the new contract," which will be fully implemented next spring, "can solve the problem."
The Municipality
Councilor for Soil Hygiene Luisa Giua Marassi doesn't hide the critical issues, but she rejects criticism of the service and the image of a city abandoned to decay. "Most citizens respect the rules and tolerate the behavior of those who leave waste on the streets. Today, we're doing everything we can, considering that the service is still managed under the old contract."
Mauro Madeddu
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