Want to help fight global warming? Take off your tie, says the Italian health ministry.
It has urged employers to let their staff dress casually at work in the summer so the air conditioning can be turned down.
"Taking your tie off immediately lowers the body temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius," the ministry said in a statement. "Allowing a more sensible use of air conditioning yields electricity savings and protects the environment."
It called on all public and private offices to let employees wear no tie during heatwaves like the one that has brought Africa-like temperatures to many parts of Italy this week.
The move echoes a similar initiative from Italy\'s biggest oil group, ENI, which told its staff earlier this month they need not wear a tie at work.
Tie makers, however, were left hot under the collar.
"Italy confirms that it is a strange country," Flavio Cima said in a letter to financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore under the headline: "I, tie maker, am responsible for global warming".
"We can now happily continue with our lifestyle, using cars, consuming fuel, heating and cooling our homes at leisure. On one condition: we should not wear a tie ," he wrote.
"I should have listened to my friends and become an oil producer instead."
Italy is one of the European Union\'s worst performers on the pollution front and is among the EU countries expected to exceed their greenhouse gas emission targets.
想为遏制全球变暖出一份力吗？听听意大利卫生部的意见：摘掉你的领带。
意大利卫生部日前敦促公司老板们允许员工夏季上班时的着装可以随意一些，这样就可以把空调调低一点。
卫生部在一份声明中说：“摘下领带会让你的体温立刻下降2至3摄氏度。合理使用空调能够省电和保护环境。”
意大利的很多地区在本周都遭到了热浪袭击，温度已攀升到“非洲水平”。卫生部呼吁所有的公共部门及私营企业允许员工在这样的酷暑天气可以不打领带上班。
之前，意大利最大的石油集团ENI已推出了与此类似的一项举措，该公司于本月早些时候告知员工上班时不用打领带。
而这一举措则让意大利的领带制造商们大为不满。
弗拉维奥·西玛给Il Sole 24 Ore财经日报写了封题为“我，一个领带制造商，要为全球变暖负责”的信，他在信中说：“意大利证明了它是个奇怪的国家。”
“我们仍可以快乐的继续我们的生活--开车出行、消耗燃料、随意地调节家里的温度。但只有一个条件：不能戴领带。”
“看来我早应该听朋友们的劝告，改行做石油生产商。”
意大利在治理环境污染方面是欧盟成员国中表现最差、温室气体排放量预计会超标的国家之一。 |
