Prato invests the most money in solar panels, according to a national survey by Legambiente that looked at 287 cities in Italy.
The fact that Prato produces 598 kWh everyday thanks to 30 solar panelled roofs was enough to put it in first place over S. Germano Chisone (Torino), Foggia and Rome. Prato's situation is truly exceptional - an out-and-out alternative and renewable energy boom in only three short years, from 2004 to 2007.
The award, an engraved plaque, was accepted by Prato's Environmental Minister, Camilla Curcio, during a ceremony organized by Legambiente at the Deputy's Chamber in Rome.
Curcio commented: ''This is an important recognition of the investments made over the last three years on the renewable energy front.
''It signifies the completion of a double objective: economical energy saving and the development of alternative energy, for a truly environmentally sustainable city''.
In 2004, the city of Prato joined the national incentive programme, ''10,000 Solar Paneled Roofs'', sponsored by the Ministry for the Environment to encourage solar energy production.
The following year the city participated in the second annual ministry competition that substituted the former ''Energy Account''.
Both converged in the city's ''Sun in Schools'' project, supported by the Environmental and Public Works departments, who put solar panels on the roofs of 30 city buildings including schools, offices and sports facilities, for a total investment of 4.2 million euro.
