# Metropolitan City of Cagliari

The Metropolitan City of Cagliari (Italian: città metropolitana di Cagliari; Sardinian: tzittadi metropolitana de Casteddu) is a metropolitan city in Sardinia, Italy. Its capital is the city of Cagliari and includes 17 comuni (sg.: comune). It was established by law in 2016 and replaced the province of Cagliari. The current president is the mayor of Cagliari, Massimo Zedda. The resident population is approximately 432,000. This figure can rise due to commuting into the functional urban area to approximately 477,000.

## Geography

The Metropolitan City of Cagliari extends over the southern part of the Campidano plain, between two mountain ranges. The Sulcis Range is to the west and includes Monti Arcosu, Monte Serpeddi [it], and Punta Sebera. To the east is the Monte Linias Range, including Punta Serpeddì [it] and Sette Fratelli. These mountains are composed of Ordovician shale and Carboniferous granite and do not exceed 1,000 m (3,300 ft). An exception is Monte Is Caravius which is 1,116 m (3,661 ft).

## Climate

The Metropolitan City of Cagliari has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry Summers and mild Winters. It is unusual for Summer temperatures to rise above 40 °C (104 °F), often with high humidity, while in winter, the record lows are below zero. Heavy snowfalls occur rarely; on average, every thirty years. January is the coldest month with an average temperature of about 10 °C (50 °F). August is the warmest month with an average temperature of that of about 25 °C (77 °F). African anticyclone activity can cause heat waves starting in June. From mid-June to mid-September rain is rare and appears in afternoon storms. The rainy season starts in September, but the first cold days come in December, usually the wettest month. Winds are frequent, especially the mistral and sirocco; in Summer days a marine sirocco breeze (s'imbattu) lowers the temperature and the humidity.
On the surrounding mountains, the climate is very different with plentiful average rainfall, cold winters, and mild warm summers (Csb in the Köppen climate classification).
Climate data for Cagliari :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 14.3 (57.7) | 14.8 (58.6) | 16.5 (61.7) | 18.6 (65.5) | 22.9 (73.2) | 27.3 (81.1) | 30.4 (86.7) | 30.8 (87.4) | 27.4 (81.3) | 23.1 (73.6) | 18.3 (64.9) | 15.4 (59.7) | 21.7 (71.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 9.9 (49.8) | 10.3 (50.5) | 11.8 (53.2) | 13.7 (56.7) | 17.7 (63.9) | 21.7 (71.1) | 24.7 (76.5) | 25.2 (77.4) | 22.3 (72.1) | 18.4 (65.1) | 13.8 (56.8) | 11.0 (51.8) | 16.7 (62.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 5.5 (41.9) | 5.8 (42.4) | 7.1 (44.8) | 8.9 (48.0) | 12.4 (54.3) | 16.2 (61.2) | 18.9 (66.0) | 19.6 (67.3) | 17.1 (62.8) | 13.7 (56.7) | 9.3 (48.7) | 6.6 (43.9) | 11.8 (53.2) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 49.7 (1.96) | 53.3 (2.10) | 40.4 (1.59) | 39.7 (1.56) | 26.1 (1.03) | 11.9 (0.47) | 4.1 (0.16) | 7.5 (0.30) | 34.9 (1.37) | 52.6 (2.07) | 58.4 (2.30) | 48.9 (1.93) | 427.5 (16.83) |
| Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 6.8 | 6.8 | 6.8 | 7.0 | 4.4 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 1.3 | 4.3 | 6.5 | 7.4 | 7.4 | 61.6 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 136.4 | 139.2 | 186.0 | 213.0 | 269.7 | 288.0 | 334.8 | 310.0 | 246.0 | 198.4 | 147.0 | 127.1 | 2,595.6 |
| Source: Servizio Meteorologico, ||||||||||||||
Climate data for Is Cannoneris near Punta Sebera m. 716 on sea level :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 9.2 (48.6) | 10.2 (50.4) | 12 (54) | 13.7 (56.7) | 18.3 (64.9) | 22.6 (72.7) | 26.4 (79.5) | 27.9 (82.2) | 23.4 (74.1) | 18.2 (64.8) | 13.8 (56.8) | 10.9 (51.6) | 17.2 (63.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 6.7 (44.1) | 7.3 (45.1) | 8.8 (47.8) | 10.4 (50.7) | 14.4 (57.9) | 19.0 (66.2) | 22.0 (71.6) | 23.7 (74.7) | 19.6 (67.3) | 15.4 (59.7) | 11.2 (52.2) | 7.9 (46.2) | 13.9 (57.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 3.1 (37.6) | 5.2 (41.4) | 5.8 (42.4) | 7.8 (46.0) | 11.5 (52.7) | 15.5 (59.9) | 19.7 (67.5) | 19.4 (66.9) | 16.2 (61.2) | 12.7 (54.9) | 9.1 (48.4) | 5.6 (42.1) | 11.0 (51.8) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 156 (6.1) | 155 (6.1) | 128 (5.0) | 95 (3.7) | 64 (2.5) | 17 (0.7) | 4 (0.2) | 15 (0.6) | 49 (1.9) | 128 (5.0) | 141 (5.6) | 178 (7.0) | 1,130 (44.5) |
| Source: Servizio Meteorologico ||||||||||||||

## Metropolitan Municipalities

| Municipality (in Italian and Sardinian) | Area (km$^2$) | Census 2001 | January 2018 | % | inhabitants/km$^2$ | Distance from city center (km) |
| Cagliari / Casteddu | 85.45 | 164,249 | 154,106 | -6,0 | 1, 808 | 0 |
| Quartu Sant'Elena / Quartu Sant'Aleni | 96.20 | 68,040 | 70,879 | 4,5 | 739 | 9 |
| Selargius/Ceraxius | 26.71 | 27,440 | 28,896 | 5,6 | 1,085 | 9 |
| Assemini / Assèmini | 117.50 | 23,973 | 26,901 | 11,3 | 227 | 14 |
| Capoterra / Cabuderra | 68.25 | 21,391 | 23,583 | 10,6 | 347 | 20 |
| Sestu | 48.32 | 15,233 | 20,958 | 36,5 | 430 | 11 |
| Monserrato / Pauli | 6.50 | 20,356 | 19,771 | -2,5 | 3,085 | 7 |
| Sinnai / Sìnnia | 223.38 | 15,235 | 17,562 | 13,0 | 77 | 15 |
| Quartucciu | 27.87 | 10,766 | 13,234 | 22,8 | 474 | 9 |
| Elmas / Su Masu | 13.70 | 7,930 | 9,546 | 18,5 | 686 | 10 |
| Uta / Uda | 134.46 | 6,692 | 8,696 | 27,8 | 64 | 29 |
| Decimomannu / Deximumannu | 28.05 | 6,836 | 8,234 | 19,1 | 290 | 19 |
| Maracalagonis | 101.60 | 6,731 | 7,980 | 17,5 | 78 | 18 |
| Pula | 138.79 | 6,535 | 7,338 | 13,6 | 53 | 33 |
| Settimo San Pietro | 23.21 | 5,949 | 6,760 | 12,6 | 289 | 13 |
| Sarroch / Sarroccu | 67.88 | 5,243 | 5,283 | 0,0 | 77 | 25 |
| Villa San Pietro / Santu Perdu | 39.61 | 1,778 | 2,138 | 18,0 | 53 | 21 |
| Total | 1,248.42 | 414,377 | 431,955 | 4,2 | 346 | |
As 470 km$^2$ are covered by forests, lagoons, ponds and salt marshes, the really populated area is 777.8 km$^2$. So the real population density rises to 553 inhabitants/km$^2$.
In 1861, the municipalities of the current metropolitan city had 67,063 inhabitants, while the city proper had 33,491. Since then the city had a population growth of 461%, while the metropolitan municipalities as an all had an increase of 644%. In that year Cagliari had a population that was the 50% of the metropolitan area, while now it is only the 36%.
In April 2021, per the Sardinian Regional Council's Regional Law Nr. 7, the metropolitan city is set to expand, following the suppression of the province of South Sardinia, as it would absorb its municipalities that do not become part of the reconstituted provinces of Medio Campidano and Sulcis Iglesiente (formerly Carbonia-Iglesias). Whilst the Italian government challenged the law, thus stalling its implementation, on March 12, 2022, the Constitutional Court ruled in favor of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia. On April 13, 2023, the regional council, at the proposal of the regional government, approved an amendment to the 2021 reform, defining the timeframe and manner of its implementation, which would see its full implementation in 2024.