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The mayor of an Italian town has banned hairdressers and barbers from shampooing their customers’ hair twice in an attempt to conserve water during one of the most severe droughts in decades, the Guardian reports.

Carlo Gubellini, the mayor of Castenaso, near Bologna in the Emilia-Romagna region, said thousands of litres of water was squandered each day through double-shampooing, which many hairdressers believe is beneficial, and hence double-rinsing.

He is believed to be the only mayor in Italy to take such a measure, which will involve checks and fines of up to €500 for salons breaking the rule, as Italy fights drought during an intense, protracted heatwave.

Castenaso, which has a population of 16,000, is home to 10 hairdressers and barber shops.

“If we multiply the amount of water used for each customer, we are talking about thousands of litres a day,” Gubellini told Corriere della Sera. “Castenaso is small: imagine what it means in terms of water consumption in large cities. We issued the order on Saturday, considering hairdressers are closed on Sundays and Mondays, to give them plenty of time to adapt.”

A handbook accompanying the measure’s guidelines states that 13 litres of water a minute flows from an open tap, and that at least 20 litres is required to rinse someone’s hair twice.

Gubellini said the rule, in place until late September, had gone down well. “The feedback has been positive,” he said. “This ordinance does not have an oppressive purpose, but rather one of empowering citizens.”

However, as the salons of Castenaso reopened on Tuesday morning, some were not so impressed.

“It seems a bit ridiculous,” said Katia, who works at Nuova Equipe hairdressers. “It’s difficult not to be able to wash and rinse twice, as some of the products we use requires it, and also types of hair, especially if the customer’s hair is quite dirty.”

Mayors of other Italian towns and cities have also imposed water-rationing measures, including Milan, where public fountains have been turned off. Regions in northern Italy are suffering the most owing to a prolonged drought of Italy’s longest river, the Po, after scant rain and snowfall this winter.