Romania’s capital Bucharest currently has too few public water fountains to quench the thirst of its residents in a hot summer day.

There are only 42 public drinking fountains in Bucharest for an official population of almost 1.9 million people, according to the Terra Milleniul III foundation. For comparison, Italy’s capital Rome has some 2,500 drinking fountains for 2.9 million inhabitants.

Terra Milleniul III and other civic organizations in Bucharest have launched on a quest to get the municipality to increase the number of public drinking fountains in the city.

According to the members of this initiative, the lack of public fountains leaves Bucharesters with no other alternative than to buy bottled water, which also determines high volumes of plastic waste.

Romania produces over 133,000 tons of PET waste every year, but only about a quarter of this quantity gets recycled. Much of this waste is produced in Bucharest.

The revival of Bucharest’s drinking fountains’ system would reduce the waste generated in Bucharest and the municipality’s spending on sanitation by at least 30%, according to the civic organizations.

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editor@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Wikipedia)