885096455

JPRS-EER-91-053 25 April 1991

POLITICAL

27

Bucharest Mayor Oproiu Discusses Problems

91BA0494A Bucharest LIBERTATEA in Romanian 27 Mar 91 pp 1-2

[Interview with Bucharest Mayor Nicolae Viorel Oproiu by Darda Bossun; place and datę not given]

[Text] Since I visit City Hall at least once a week, my path inevitably and often crosses that of Nicolae Viorel Oproiu, mayor of the Capital. And so it came to pass, that without any formal appointment, on a springtime after-noon, over a cup of tea, we held this conversation. It is not a true interview, but rather a “sharing of thoughts” during a moment of peace.

[Oproiu] What is on your mind?

[Bossun] Right now, on the spot, I do not have anything specific. I assume that after three and one-half months of being the city’s number one official, you have experi-enced at least some confrontations (you have served through one winter!). However, let us start with some-thing pleasant.

[Oproiu] Let us look at “confrontations” for a while, because they are a legion, all of them the result of the city’s lack of facilities. They are not available, not because we, Romanians, do not know how to provide them, but because of the system, which defined this situation over the long term. On one hand, it adopted unsatisfactory approaches, and on the other, even those eventually became insufTicient. Let us look at one indi-cator: population. In 1948 Bucharest had 830,000 inhab-itants; currently, and including the IIfov agricultural sector, we are faccd with the living, housing, and cultural needs of no less than 3 million people! People who were gradually subjected to and suffered restrictions of heat, light, gas, transportation—not to mention food.

But coming back to your suggestion of something pleasant, how about heat and hot water in apartments. (It would seem that the topie is no longer “seasonal,” but we will certainly see another winter.) The city’s energy balance is in the population’s disadvantagc. The heating plant system, which is being used by morę than one-half of the city’s buildings, cannot be faulted; it operated very well between 1960 and 1970; it is economical (compared to smali heating installations) and nonpolluting. But it has deteriorated in recent years, especially as the number of consumers has grown significantly, while production plants and distribution networks have remained practi-cally the same, so that its hydraulic capabilities are no longer adequate. Studies are currently underway to inerease the supply and modify the network; we hope that their findings will be implemented beginning with this year. As we know, no heating plants were allowed to be built in the city’s northern section in past years, with the result that the heating medium has difficulty reaching users after moving through 80 km of pipes, as it does from CET (Thermal Heating Plant) South, for instance; or it does not reach them at all, as has hap-pened this winter, when entire neighborhoods were forced to suffer. The studies I mentioned propose the construction of plants in the city’s northern area, as well as a restructuring of the entire network so that effective repairs can be performed in case of problems.

[Bossun] At the beginning of February we did not know what else to stuff under the doors or around Windows to stop the “draft.” It was no use against the gales that were blowing! In the words of the poet, “cold heater, cold pipę.”

[Oproiu] Yes, of course, the question of thermal insula-tion for apartments. Infrared seans have shown that 85 percent of the apartments are currently leaking a lot of heat to the outside. We can no longer afford to heat the surrounding air rather than the one inside! That is why we will begin an enormous operation of installing extemal insulation for morę than 500,000 apartments. Although the effort and amount of work are huge, difficult, and costly, we will have to do it, and do it very well. We will have to leam to work to the tenth of a millimeter in construction, just as we do in industry. With perfect airtight carpentry and adequate outside insulation, two-three heater unit segments will be enough, as is the case in foreign construction standards.

[Bossun] Still on the subject of households...

[Oproiu] Let us talk about water. I should have said in fact, that the city hall’s primary “policy” is to assure, in order of priority, heat, water, light, and food, all of which are morę important, let us say, than transportation. In our opinion, the water supply is satisfactory, but we continue to be interested in expanding supply and distribution, as well as in improving the quality of the water. Last year, we contacted a large company in France because we wanted to adopt ozone water treatment (instead of chlorine), which proves to be morę efficient and healthier. Even though the Bucharest drinking water falls within standard specifications, the city’s population will drink much better water in two-three years. The administration council has approved a 3 billion lei investment to build a water treatment plant at Ogrezeni, in the Arges water basin.

The natural gas supply has been hurt by the extensive construction site at the center of the city, and by the Dimbovita improvcment project, which has practically amputated the entire network. IRIDGN and the Min-istry of Resources are now responsible both for rebuilding the network, and for assuring adequate sup-plies in the city’s incoming gas supply.

Electric power is currently not a problem. I say it again: All the power interruptions for specific consumers during this winter was due solely to network overload (electric heaters, hot air blowers, hot plates, improvised installations—everything was being plugged in for a wisp of heat!). Hence the power shortages and morę impor-tantly, the recurring damages.

[Bossun] Even though you did not list it as a “priority,” public transportation remains a serious problem. My