PISTOIA. Separate waste collection that does not take off may be one of the causes of the significant increase in the Tari, which, in Pistoia in the five-year period 2018-2023, had an increase of 55%, even 15% more than Florence. A leap that places it in first place among the provincial capitals of Tuscany.
The upward trend is certified by the economic, fiscal and social security policies service of the Uil, which conducted its studies based on a typical family of 4 people residing in a house of 80 m2 and with an ISEE of no more than 25 thousand euros. The increase can also be seen compared to 2022. Then, the postman delivered a bill for 445 euros while, in 2023, a bill for 490 euros was placed in the box, increased by 10.67% compared to the previous year. In absolute numbers, the second most expensive in Tuscany, behind only Pisa (555 euros).
The cause may therefore be the lack of familiarity of the people of Pistoia with separate waste collection but also the numerous abandonments of textile waste that the municipality of Pistoia experiences every year, especially in the areas close to the border with the Prato textile district. However, the general secretary of Uil Toscana Paolo Fantappiè also attributes the increase to other causes: «Certainly the low percentage of waste separation contributes to increasing the cost of the bill, even if, in all likelihood, this increase is also attributable to other reasons. In fact, Pistoia has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in Tuscany and this leads to a significant increase in waste to be disposed of. Another reason could be the growth in the number of homes rented to non-residents, students or tourists.”
Daniele Gioffredi, general secretary of the CGIL of Pistoia, is very critical of these increases: «For Pistoia families this is a blow because the increases are well above inflation. Pistoia pays for the poor efficiency of separate waste collection, which is below 50%. In other places in the province, such as Quarrata, the costs of the Tari are lower because the waste separation works better there. The Municipality of Pistoia will not have to enter the multi-utility just for the dividends but above all to implement policies in favor of the citizens”.
Alessandra Biagini, secretary of the CISL Toscana Nord, is moderately optimistic. «The Tari has increased almost everywhere – she says – I hope that this is just a transition phase awaiting future stabilisation. According to the CISL, the multi-utility must be an optimization of resources and not a bandwagon which, to stand up, needs large resources. Our hope is that, in the future, there will be a reversal of the trend.”
Instead, Tiziano Fabbri, provincial secretary of the Pistoia UGL, points his accusatory finger at the Region: «It is clear that a real regional waste plan is missing. The cost we have to bear is also linked to the lack of waste disposal systems, which the Tuscany Region is unable to manage in the best way. The waste is taken out and it is clear that there is a large increase in overall costs. In the absence of this plan, costs will always increase and those who will suffer most from these increases will be employees and pensioners if their salaries are not adjusted in a manner consistent with the cost of living”.
However, it is Uil regional secretary Paolo Fantappiè himself who has revealed a glimmer of hope in this story of increases who, with the findings of his union’s study centre, has focused attention on the problem: «The regional council has been on the one hand oriented towards overcoming waste-to-energy plants but, on the other, it is focusing its attention on the construction of specific plants for the recovery of individual types of waste. The construction of the Baciacavallo plant in Prato, intended for the recovery of textile waste, goes precisely in this direction.”
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