A DEAD CITY’S ENERGETIC AUDIT: THE CASE OF POMPEII

Bruna Rubichi , Marina Fumo1 2

1 Seconda Università Degli Studi di Napoli, Via S. Abbondio n.155/F -80045-

Pompei (NA), rubien@libero.it

2 Università Degli Studi di Napoli “Federico II” , Dipartimento di ingegneria Civile, Edile e

Ambientale - Piazzale V.Tecchio n.80 (NA), marina.fumo@unina.it

ABSTRACT

The era of globalization and urbanization has dictated a development model privileging human’s

ambitions over nature’s respect. This has indeed produced devastating consequences on the natural

environment and consequent depletion of traditional energy sources. To cope with such

controversial issue, modern legislations, both at national and international level, moved towards a

more rational use of energy and the development and favouring of renewable resources. In this

respect Italy followed many plans of action for energetic efficiency. Several laws and directives

contributed in fact to reduce consumption, asking both businesses and households to comply with

always more efficient practices. The Italian context is a very peculiar one as it is made up of several

towns and cities endowed and embedded with a great amount of archeological findings. The

archeological sites are sometimes a “city within the city”, with the ancient Urbes strictly linked with

the modern one. Pompeii is the most outstanding example of this, with an overall area of more than

. The management of this particular areas (by the local and national administration) has mostly

neglected in the past the issue of the of innovative technologies for energy recovery, putting far

greater concern upon conservation of the archeological site. Recently however, especially as a

consequence of the always increasing rate of energy demand of the archeological area of Pompeii,

there has been some debate going on, on how to rationalise such area and reduce its environmental

impact, and indeed its energetic costs. In a world where growing urban context are the main focus

of experimentation for coordinated intervention strategies, the ancient Pompeii, as a city in all the

aspects, provides a unique opportunity to transfer and readapt the sustainable concepts conceived

for modern cities, to a town of more than 2000 years. The archeological area of Pompeii with its

many buildings and related activities, calls for high costs of energy utilization: approximately 42

buildings within and outside the ancient city walls and their relative lighting system; infrastructures

supporting the security service and the seasonal events (night visits and concerts), which extends

the energy usage over the standard visiting times. An accurate energetic analysis of this “Dead

City” has allowed to obtain precise figures of its present energy use. On such ground it was possible

to provide an adequate foundation for integrated research and a range of feasible plans for future

sustainability, always bearing in mind the aesthetic importance and preservation of the site. This

paper includes a complete cataloguing and classification of the different types of structure by their

energy class and for each of them it carries a detailed analysis and a plan for possible energetic

rationalization.

Parole chiave / Key-words: Pompeii, Dead City, Energy use, Photovoltaic system