The CEO of MM Spa, Francesco Mascolo, has been elected Vice-President of Aqua Publica Europea (APE), the European Association of Public Water Operators.
APE brings together 73 public water and sanitation service operators and other entities working to promote public water management at both European and international levels. These are non-profit companies, committed to providing high-quality services to 90 million citizens every day in an efficient, responsible, and sustainable manner.
MMspa has been managing the Integrated Water Service of the city of Milan since 2003, serving 2 million people every day, from groundwater abstraction to purification and return to agriculture.
The President of APE was confirmed as Belgian Bernard Van Nuffel, President of VIVAQUA, the water service operator of Brussels. The second Vice-President elected by the Assembly held in Athens is Frenchman Dan Lert, Deputy Mayor of Paris and responsible for ecological transition, climate plan, water and energy, as well as President of Eau de Paris, the first public water company in France.
“This is a recognition of the commitment and managerial capacity of the water service in Italy and of the excellence of Milan,” said Francesco Mascolo, “and thanks to this role we will be able to compare ourselves with the main institutions and major European players to improve the management of public water. In this sense, I am eager to provide my contribution to the noble mission and values of APE. Water is a fundamental resource for life and must be managed in a socially responsible manner to ensure its conservation for the benefit of future generations.”
“In continuing to promote the public management model,” added Mascolo, “we know that the role of operators is changing profoundly: from providers of quality water at the lowest possible cost and adequate wastewater treatment service, to managers of the precious water resource. Our perimeter of activity is widening and now ranges from basin protection to drought and extreme event risk management, from water reuse and nutrient recovery to the challenge of energy neutrality, from monitoring and removal of emerging pollutants, such as PFAS and microplastics, to ecosystem protection with nature-based projects.”
More info at https://www.aquapublica.eu/