Drought: The mayors of Sorso and Sennori are calling for the activation of a former water purification plant.

Mayors on the front line with Abbanoa to address the water emergency caused by the drought in the Sassari area .

In recent days, the mayors of Sorso, Fabrizio Demelas, and Sennori, Nicola Sassu, sent a request to EGAS, Abbanoa, and the Sardinia Region's Department of Public Works, to evaluate the possibility of reactivating the old Sorso water purification plant, which had been decommissioned for over fifteen years. This plant received its raw water supply from the Coghinas water treatment plant. Aged and inadequate, it was decommissioned, and the city of Sorso was connected to the Bidighinzu aqueduct. Now that the Bidighinzu aqueduct is experiencing a water crisis due to a lack of water in the Bidighinzu reservoir, alternative solutions are being sought. Yesterday morning , Mayors Fabrizio Demelas and Nicola Sassu inspected the former Sorso water purification plant together with Abbanoa's technical director, Guglielmo Ranalleta .

The plant, decommissioned in 2009, once supplied the city of Sorso with water via the Coghinas 2 pipeline, transferring it to the Giorra and Salamagna reservoirs. Today, those reservoirs are fed exclusively by the Bidighinzu aqueduct, a basin experiencing a severe reduction in available resources, with inevitable repercussions for services, families, and businesses. Following the inspection, it emerged that the plant needed to be rebuilt from scratch and that part of the current aqueduct layouts needed to connect to the municipal networks of Sorso and Sennori. Operational discussions with EGAS and the Regional Hydrographic District Agency (ADIS) will also be necessary to define planning, resources, and authorizations.

The shared goal is to separate Sorso and Sennori from the Bidighinzu, freeing up water resources for other municipalities that currently have no alternatives, and at the same time ensuring continuity and water security for Romangia thanks to the availability of the Coghinas, which has larger reserves and greater resilience in drought conditions.

"Our community and the entire Northwest region," said Sorso Mayor Fabrizio Demelas, "are experiencing a critical phase, and we cannot simply manage the emergency: we must anticipate future vulnerabilities. Reactivating the Sorso plant connected to the Coghinas is a common-sense choice, supported by technical elements and a strategic vision that focuses on the resilience of the region. As local governments, we are moving forward with unity of purpose and a sense of responsibility, alongside Abbanoa and regional institutions, because ensuring water for our citizens is not just an administrative priority, but a duty to our community and to future generations."

"We thank Abbanoa's Board of Directors Chairman and Technical Director Guglielmo Ranalletta for their prompt attention and response to our proposal. We now hope that the other relevant authorities will consider and promptly implement the solution of reactivating the old water treatment plant and connecting the towns of Sorso and Sennori to the Coghinas aqueduct ," stated Sennori Mayor Nicola Sassu. "This would, on the one hand, at least partially resolve the current water supply issues in Sorso and Sennori. On the other hand, by disconnecting the two municipalities from the Bidighinzu network, the current volumes consumed by Sorso and Sennori, which represent approximately 30% of the total water supplied by the Bidighinzu, would be made available to the other municipalities supplied by the aforementioned reservoir."