Energy efficiency must be accelerated through close cooperation between the central and local authorities, the mayor of Biruința village of Sângerei district Maxim Gritsunic, deputy chairman of the Green Ecologist Party, stated in a public debate titled "Energy efficiency can (re)integrate Moldova", hosted by IPN News Agency. According to the mayor, while large localities made considerable progress in terms of energy efficiency in homes, in smaller localities this process is just beginning or even non-existent.
The mayor of Biruința noted that the process of increasing energy efficiency was left to the discretion of the local public authorities, which have neither the necessary resources nor specialized personnel to correctly inform the population and carry out energy audits.
"Today, in the Republic of Moldova a lot is done in terms of energy efficiency, but compared to the European Union, it is not enough anyway. The lack of information in remote localities complicates the process of implementing this program. Energy efficiency policies must not be oriented from the top down, but must come from below, from the citizens. Large cities have specialists who can perform the energy audit, but these are absent in small localities," said Maxim Gritsunic.
He explained that, in the absence of specialists, the mayor’s offices cannot concretely estimate the savings that citizens could make through energy efficiency measures. In this connection, the mayor proposed creating a regional HUB dedicated to energy efficiency.
"I am in favor of creating a regional Hub in this regard, which would deal with energy efficiency. Now everything is left to the discretion of the local public authorities and this is not exactly fair because we do not have these powers either. We do not have the technical skills to explain to the people how the energy efficiency process takes place. The person wants to know precisely how much they will spend, how much they will save later after the house is made energy efficient,” said the mayor of Biruința.
He also said that energy efficiency is not only a technical problem, but also a social one, which involves changing mentalities and a joint effort between the authorities and citizens.
"We, as representatives of the local public administration, come up with the idea, but someone has to implement it. In the field of energy efficiency, there must be cooperation, transparency and speed. The people are already tired of waiting and spending so much," said Maxim Gritsunic.
The public debate entitled "The first lessons of the energy crisis in the Eastern region" was held as part of the project "IPN News Agency for Social Cohesion and a Pro-European Moldova", funded by IMS.
