Volunteer managers to take care of public spaces are appointed in Porto Alegre

New volunteer managers to take care of public spaces, especially green areas, were appointed this Saturday morning by Mayor Sebastião Melo. The event took place at General Braga Pinheiro square, located between Washington Luiz and Espírito Santo streets and Loureiro da Silva avenue, in the Historic Center of Porto Alegre. The goal now is to reach 500 volunteers by the end of this year, with everyone prepared to help and contribute to the government in the care, care and maintenance of the 688 squares and parks in the city.

“I think that life only makes sense if it is communal. Our time to take care of others, the other and the city is what motivates us”, said Sebastião Melo in the speech. “The mayor of the square is our link”, he stressed. “Never in history has so much square been renovated as now. We have a good schedule”, he pointed out.

The mayor also spoke about the schedule for the 251st anniversary of the Capital. During the festivities, he intends to hand over a medal of recognition to a volunteer square manager as well, aiming to “stimulate that it is worth taking care of the city”. Another expected medal will be for a street sweeper to be chosen. It is a tribute, in his opinion, to those who take care of the cleanliness of the city.

On the issue of urban cleaning, Sebastião Melo pointed to the need for an awareness campaign, referring in particular to the correct disposal of street containers. For him, the equipment should only receive organic waste and not dry garbage, as has been verified throughout the city. “This is a problem we need to talk to our neighbors about. We don’t do this by decree. We don’t do this by pulling someone, we do it by convincing, ”he said.

He even considered that children need to be part of this process. “I think it would be an interesting thing to go to schools,” he said. “Today we spend millions on cleaning the city”, he warned, considering that the resources could be invested in other areas if everyone cooperated.

In the speech, Sebastião Melo revealed that he plans to install a second ecological barrier on the Cavalhada stream, in the Cristal neighborhood, and possibly two more in other parts of the city. He also expressed sympathy for the gradual abolition of plastic bags in the municipality. “We have a huge environmental challenge in the city”, he summarized.

Sebastião Melo also pointed out that he should send a bill to the Chamber of Councilors to tighten legislation against commercial establishments that receive stolen electrical cables and wires to use copper. He warned that the theft of this material has caused damage to the city, with traffic lights and public lighting turned off. Even the water supply ends up being affected by the lack of electricity. “This Friday, 27 neighborhoods in the city were left without water”, he said.

Finally, the mayor of Porto Alegre emphasized the importance of the 156+POA application so that citizens have access to city hall services and information.