The Government announces 368 million to install air conditioning in schools and health centers. It sounds like a round number, but the reality is that in the middle of 2024, there are children sweating in classrooms at 40 degrees and patients in emergency rooms without air. The investment is necessary, but the context hurts: it arrives after decades of cuts and postponed works. Public money appears when the photo is nice or when it's campaign season, not when it's time to plan.
Energy efficiency: the technology that covers up decades of neglect 🔥
From a technical point of view, air-conditioning 32,000 centers with 368 million is, to say the least, optimistic. Distributed, it comes to about 11,500 euros per center. Enough for a couple of mid-range splits, not for an efficient installation with heat pumps, ventilation systems with heat recovery, or thermal envelopes. The key is not just installing machines, but insulating windows, ceilings, and facades. Without that, the cool air escapes and the bill skyrockets. The technology exists, it just needs to be applied wisely.
Planning: that word politicians avoid like the sun ☀️
The best part is that now the same people who cut maintenance budgets for years are boasting about this announcement. It's like an arsonist presenting himself as a volunteer firefighter. Children sweat, the sick suffocate, and meanwhile, politicians pat themselves on the back. Air conditioning is fine. Planning is better. But that doesn't make headlines. And politicians, as we know, prefer not to remember.