Spain orders public places set air conditioning no lower than 27 degrees Celsius - The Verge
The country joins France, Greece, and Italy in restricting the use of cooling in offices, shops, restaurants and other spaces to combat rising temperatures and fuel costs.
As Europe grapples with a scorching summer and skyrocketing energy prices, Spain has become the latest government to tell its citizens to turn down the AC.
A decree published on Tuesday morning in the official state gazette and scheduled to go into effect next week mandates that air conditioning in public places be set at or above 27 degrees Celsius (about 80 degrees Fahrenheit) and that doors of those buildings remain closed to save energy.
Those public places include offices, shops, bars, theaters, airports, and train stations. The decree is being extended as a recommendation to all Spanish households. The rules include maintaining heating at or below 19 degrees Celsius (about 66 degrees Fahrenheit) in the winter and will remain in place at least through November 2023.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has stated publicly that the country urgently needs to save energy, even encouraging office workers to remove their ties to help stay cool without artificial assistance. “I’ve asked ministers and public and private sector bosses not to wear ties unless it’s necessary,” he said at a press conference last week.
Lighthearted suggestions aside, European countries are scrambling to untangle twin problems; scorching heat that’s driving up energy demand and political conflict that’s complicating energy supplies. Nations, including Spain, are facing increasing pressure not to rely on gas supplied by Russia amid the ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
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