The reactions to the proposal to erect overhead high-tension cables between Chania and Damasta rumble on – with members of the Region’s Environmental Committee vigorously denying that they have been pressured to approve the plan. In a statement to Haniotika Nea, councillors Giannis Manousakas, Emmanouil Fragakis and Chrysa Makraki Haritaki said:

“As councillors for the Regional Unit of Chania and as members of the Environment and Planning Committee for the Region of Crete, neither are we being ‘pressured’ … on this particular issue of the high-tension pylons nor on any other issue which comes up for discussion in the committee in which we participate. In any case, the committee’s decision is advisory in character and not decisive. We have judgment, we study each issue meticulously, we vote according to our conscience and only for the good of Crete.” Describing the mayor of Apokoronas’s statement as insulting, they made it clear that “there has never been any pressure or plot on this or on any other issue which comes up in the committee.”

At the same time a larger and potentially much more environmentally damaging “green” project has been causing alarm in several municipalities of the Regional Unit of Chania. Six wind farms in western Crete are projected in plans submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Energy by Terna Energy, a member of the GEK-Terna Group, which is one of the biggest construction and infrastructure groups in Greece. With an installed output of 288 megawatts, the wind farms will operate in the municipalities of Kissamos, Sfakia, Apokoronas and Kandanos-Selino. An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project has been published, for consultation up to 22nd April 2024.

The construction of the wind farms will reportedly require cutting new roads of some 57 km and improving another 32 km of existing agricultural roads. The installations and their associated works will affect the local communities of: Platanos, Lousakies, Sirikari, Kalathenes, Topolia, Kampos, Kefali, Perivolia, Elos, Strovles, Palaiochora, Temenia, Rodovani, Sougia, Kampanos, Skafi and Innachori, Askifou, Hora Sfakion, Imbros, Asfendos, Patsianos and Skaloti, Embrosneros, Alikampos and Mazi. An overhead high-tension cable approximately 12.5 km in length will also be required linking with the Chania substation.

Objections to the wind farm plans
However, the issue is drawing vigorous reactions from many local and environmental bodies. Already there was a meeting of the island’s Mountaineers’ Associations in Lasithi on Sunday 3rd March, to discuss other plans to install wind generators on the Lasithi Plain, where the issue of the project for Chania was also raised. “We are in favour of Renewable Energy Sources but not in Natura areas and at altitudes above 1200 metres, because the mountains are being levelled,” the general secretary of the Mountaineers’ Association of Chania told Haniotika Nea.

The Associations’ members do not agree with the alteration of the natural environment, the building of roads on the Madara [mountain massif] and the general downgrading of the environment, and for this reason they are going to submit various proposals as part of the consultation process.
(Haniotika Nea 05/03/24)

Meeting in Sfakia
A general meeting on the issue was held in Askifou on 11th March, where engineer and advisor to the Municipality of Sfakia, Stavros Kapridakis presented Terna Energy’s plans, explaining that 26 sites have been earmarked in the municipality – from Frangokastello to the boundaries of Alikampos in Apokoronas – where gigantic wind generators would be installed, requiring the building of 28 km of new roads across the Madara.

Mr Kapridakis described the plan as “an absolutely catastrophic intervention as regards the roads and the spaces which will have to be opened over the Madara to allow the enormous vehicles carrying the wind generators to pass. There will be tremendous damage to the natural environment and a total debasement of it. The basic occupation of many young people especially in Askifou is stock-raising, bee-keeping and tourism and their plans will be destroyed.” He laid special emphasis on the great height of each wind generator, which would be surrounded by an open gravel-covered area of 10-12 stremmata.

The mayor of Sfakia Giannis Zervos said that “in the event the this project goes ahead and these pharaonic installations are sited in our area, the natural environment and our lives will be radically altered.” He noted that each wind generator would be on a column 105 metres tall, with blades of 150 metres’ diameter, which would mean that enormous roads 12 metres wide would have to be opened in the Sfakian Madara. “We will not allow anything to happen which disturbs our municipalities,” he said, adding that Chania MPs Sevi Voloudaki and Pavlos Polakis had both declared their support for the Municipality of Sfakia.

The mayor of Apokoronas Haralambos Koukianakis said that decisions were being taken “for the local communities without the local communities. … We are not against the energy upgrading of Crete, but it must be done in the right way, with respect for the environment. It is inconceivable that the Madara will be filled with wind turbines,” he said.

The mayor of Kissamos Giorgos Mylonakis spoke of the need for unity among all the municipalities. He said that his municipality had designated one area where wind generators have been installed, but it was not prepared to give any more space on the mountains within its borders.

The Deputy Regional Governor for Chania Nikos Kalogeris noted that the project in question had been posted on the website of the RAE (Regulatory Authority for Energy, Waste and Water) in 2011, but the plan was withdrawn shortly afterwards because it would not have passed the Council of State, “and now it’s coming round again.”
“Don’t become divided as a community,” he advised the Sfakians, adding that the plan is “clearly unacceptable”, and that although the Regional Council’s decision could not be taken fοr granted he was sure that it would not pass. He also noted that the proposal by Terna Energy is one of many plans, and there are similar proposals by other companies.

“Crete needs 600-700 MW and there have been applications exceeding 10,000 MW,” said Alekos Marinakis, who heads the KKE-backed “Popular Rally”, adding that these projects “are subsidised with our own money and at the same time the price of electricity is increasing.”

The participants agreed to make a show of strength at any meeting of the Regional Environmental Committee or the Regional Council where the issue of the Regional Authority’s approval was to be raised. (The next meeting of the Environmental Committee is scheduled to take place in April.) The municipality has since issued minutes of the meeting with detailed statements of its objections to the scheme, which can be seen here.
(Haniotika Nea 12/03/24)

The Forestry Directorate against the wind farms
The Forestry Directorate of Chania has also issued a resounding “No” to the wind farm project. In its consultative opinion, the Directorate notes that works are planned to be carried out within protected areas – areas of the Natura 2000 network, wildlife refuges and areas of significance for bird life – while it considers that the work can be expected to have significant and irreversible effects on the environment.

In justification of its position, the Directorate says: “The effects on forest vegetation from the execution of the project (the wind generators and road construction) are considered major stress factors given that more than 95 per cent of the work (according to the Ministry of the Environment and Energy) is proposed in areas subject to Forestry Legislation, and significant impacts will ensue on the vegetation and the habitats of the areas proposed.”

It also notes that “interventions are proposed within or near forestry expanses with special vegetation and restricted human activity, while there are also proposals for opening road networks.” These new roads, it says, “are likely to bring about an increase in hunting – both legal and illegal – as well as in outbreaks of fire due to human factors.”

The Forestry Directorate also cites a series of other dangers such as:
– erosion which will cause degradation of the landscape and the ecosystem,
– fragmentation of communities and hindrance to their free communication,
– irreversible effects on bird life, of which it says: “The proposed works are likely to act as barriers to the local and seasonal movements of birds, forcing them to change their local and migrational routes.”

Objections of the mountaineers
The Mountaineers’ Association of Chania has pronounced itself in favour of Renewable Energy Sources but against the construction of “pharaonic works”. A statement issued on Friday 14th March and signed by the president Stavros Badogiannis and the general secretary Christos Hatzichristodoulou reiterated the Association’s “firm position on banning the installation of wind generators above 1,200 metres” and noted that “we have formerly had recourse to the Council of State, together with other mountaineering associations in Crete and in Greece, and other groups. We feel that we must take Pancretan action in this direction.”

According to the Mountaineers’ Association “the installation of these gigantic wind generators (Heavy Renewable Energy Sources) as described in the Environmental Impact Assessment presupposes the opening of hundreds of kilometres of roads along the mountain ranges of Crete, which if taken together with the kilometres of cables required is itself unscientific. The installation of these Heavy Renewable Energy Sources should be subject to rigorous environmental limits and be monitored by an independent authority.”

The statement adds: “Without wanting to open the question of the caves which are scattered across our mountains, we would point out that the law forbids the positioning of Heavy Alternative Energy Sources next to caves. We feel sure that the Speleological Confederation of Greece will quickly take a position on this.
“The construction of these works will irreversibly affect ancient sanctuaries, ancient footpaths and dozens of archaeological sites. There is also the international Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) network, which is dedicated to the preservation of threatened species, endemic species and birds which are dependent on specific habitats for their survival.
“We must not forget that on the Lasithi Plain, but also everywhere in the mountains of Crete, there are mild forms of economic activity such as stock raising, beekeeping etc, and humans and animals spend their lives there, without mentioning the tens of thousands of hikers who come from all corners of the planet to walk there. It is the Association’s firm position that electrical power should be provided free of charge to the villages which make up the small communities of our island.
“For all the above reasons we are against the installations which are being planned without taking account of the environment or the local communities, or even of common sense.”
(Haniotika Nea 16/03/24)

Objections from the Municipal Council of Kantanos-Selino
More recently, the Municipal Council of Kantanos-Selino has produced a detailed set of arguments against the project, underlining the environmental issues at stake. At a meeting held on Tuesday 26th March, the Council declared their opposition to the installation of wind generators on the mountains both in their own and in other municipalities. The decision was passed unanimously with the exception of one majority councillor.

Two wind farms are planned for the Municipality of Kantanos-Selino with 14 wind generators producing 84 megawatts. Speaking to Haniotika Nea the mayor of Kantanos-Selino Antonis Perrakis said that the Municipal Council was against the plan as the wind farms would “start above Gialiskari Beach and reach as far as Sougia” [a distance of some 10 km]. Some 89 km of roads would be run across the massif, they are within Natura areas and near to the archaeological sites of Lissos, Yrtakina and Elyros, and would affect the E4 footpath.”

In the statement of its position, the Council said that the construction of wind generators with an overall height of 180 m and a blade diameter of 150 m on the mountain peaks would be visible from nearly all the settlements in the immediate area and the archaeological sites, and raised the following specific objections:

“- The proposed sites for wind generators 02 and 03 adjoin important archaeological sites and monuments, affecting their cultural value. The project will degrade biodiversity and the landscape, affecting our national obligations under the European Landscape Convention (Government Journal 30/A/2010). The impacts on the geomorphology of the area will be irreversible.
– The project is unacceptable to the local community and in the case of a permit being granted there will be very strong social repercussions.
– The implementation of the works will downgrade existing traditional economic activities and hiking/nature-worshipping tourism, constituting an obstacle to the development of ecotourism in the area. The policy which our Municipality has forged over the past few years is to promote the comparative advantages of our locality and chiefly the mountain massif.
– The project is incompatible with the approved Regional Planning Framework for Crete (Government Journal 250/AAP/2017).
– The project is incompatible with the Municipality’s Local Planning Scheme (Joint Ministerial Decision 147479: Approval of the Strategic Environmental Impact Study for the General Planning Scheme for the Municipal Unit of Pelekanos in the Municipality of Kantanos-Selino).
– The project is not compatible with the Municipality of Kantanos-Selino’s proposals for the Special Environmental Study for Levka Ori which is under discussion, or with the proposals of the Study itself.
– The project is incompatible with the “National Action Scheme for carrion-eating bird species in Greece” (Government Journal 3663/B/2021) and is expected to have irreversible impacts on the populations and the dwelling places of the vulture (Council Directive 79/409/EEC).
– The project will have significant impacts on flora and fauna, as well as on protected chiroptera (bats) in an area where they are endemic.
– The project will affect preservation targets for types of habitat and species in the area (Special Preservation Zone GR4340005, Government Journal 1907/B/2023). It will also affect Priority Habitat 6220 “Pseudo-steppe with grasses and annuals of the Thero-Brachypodietea” (Council Directive 92/43/EEC).
– The proposed pharaonic Alternative Energy works do not offer a corresponding benefit to Greek citizens, as regards the cost of the electrical energy which consumers are obliged to pay for.
– The proposed pharaonic wind farms in Crete are aimed at producing more than double the amount of energy that is needed on the island.”

Finally, the statement noted:“The Energy Plan for Crete should have incorporated from the beginning the mild exploitation of all the forms of renewable energy sources, respecting biodiversity, the natural environment, the landscape and the special characteristics of local communities, as well as Greece’s obligations in regard to established regimes for protecting the natural environment and the landscape which are derived from Community law, from international agreements, and from the laws and ministerial decisions which have been voted in by the Greek Parliament.”

The Municipal Council states that it empowers the mayor “to proceed with every legal form of objection and recourse to the Greek courts and to European bodies in the event that the project is given an environmental permit and the decision to approve the environmental conditions runs counter to the reasoning of the current decision.”

The Municipal Council supports “all the other affected municipalities – Kissamos, Sfakia and Apokoronas – and together we will strive to avert the destruction and degradation of the Cretan landscape through the planned industrial-scale installations for the production of electrical energy on the Cretan Madares.”
(Haniotika Nea 27/03/24)

Are private companies to blame?
In an opinion piece in Haniotika Nea entitled “Privatisation for whom?”, Sifis Chiotakis notes that other countries have reversed the trend towards privatisation of natural resources and asks: why is it that Greece has not done the same, with the result that these mammoth projects seem designed to bring profits to the investors while ignoring the needs of local residents? The answer must surely lie in the insistence of the nation’s European lenders, under the terms of the successive bailouts, on the wholesale privatisation of the nation’s assets, with particular emphasis on infrastructure and energy.

The various reports have not specified whether this is a purely private-sector initiative or whether it was instigated by the Ministry of the Environment and Energy. However, it is clear that if given a free rein, alternative energy companies will tend towards “pharaonic projects”. GEK Terna are a major construction group with 1,800 km of motorway under construction in Greece, soon to include the Chania-Hersonissos section of the VOAK for which they are the the preferred contractor. They are also part of the consortium building the new Kastelli-Heraklion airport.

If the initiative comes from the government, in pursuit of their stated plans to turn Crete into an “energy hub”, they may need to reflect on the disadvantages of such an approach. Crete is heavily dependent on tourism: of its GDP of €8.9 billion (2017 figure) nearly 50 per cent derives from tourism and its associated activities. While much of that is generated by the northern coastal strip with its beaches, hotels and restaurants, “ecotourism” which focuses on rural activities inland is becoming an increasingly important part of the island’s touristic offering. Such activities are important in the remote areas affected by the wind farm plans, as are the traditional occupations of stock-raising, cheese-making and bee-keeping, whose products form a considerable part of the island’s attraction to visitors.

Especially if, as has been stated in the various discussions, traditional ways of life are being sacrificed to produce more energy than the island itself needs, then local reactions will be all the more intense. Bearing in mind Crete’s, and particularly Sfakia’s history of rebellion to imposed authority, it is clear that the municipalities affected will not go down without a fight, and they have at their disposal a national and European legal framework through which they will undoubtedly make their objections heard.