Contracts will shortly be signed for the management schemes for the region’s three emblematic beaches – Balos, Falassarna and Elafonisi – following Ministerial Decisions issued over a year ago. Signing will take place on 27th February in Kissamos, with those involved including representatives of the Environment ministry, the Region of Crete, the Natural Environment and Climate Change Agency (NECCA), the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR), the municipalities of Kissamos and Kandanos-Selino and others. With the signature of the management plan by all the participants, the sum of €1.5 million will be made available for works to protect the three areas.

“The programme agreement and the implementation of the management plans are a justification of our struggle and that of the Municipality of Kissamos for the protection of these vulnerable areas which are included in the Presidential order,” the mayor of Kandanos-Selino Antonis Perrakis told Haniotika Nea, emphasising “the very good cooperation of the Municipalities for the area of Elafonisi, which we are managing together. We will continue this joint effort to make our areas open to visitors but at the same time protected,” he said.

As Mr Perrakis explained, since the publication of the Ministerial Decisions in September of 2023, the two municipalities have taken on the bulk of the operations, but with the signature of the programme agreement responsibilities will be shared by the public services, the Regional Authority and the Municipalities. “We have very good collaboration with the Environment ministry as well as NECCA, to whom we are very grateful,” Mr Perrakis concluded.

An important step
Describing the development as a “very important step”, special adviser to the Municipality of Kissamos on the environment and planning Kostas Koukourakis said: “Together with the Municipality of Kandanos-Selino we have installed barriers at Elafonisi to prevent vehicles from going down into the protected area, we have fenced off the cedars, and there are now wardens there all the year round.

“All this while revenues have been reduced by 65 per cent, as we now have 90 umbrellas instead of 400 or 500 and the product codes in the cafeteria have been reduced from 200 to 100, and they will be reduced further, so as to restrict the amount of time visitors spend there, so that we don’t have thousands of people. Also, the Municipalities have removed the caravans and fenced off the vulnerable areas, they have taken on responsibility for the administration and removed the illegal buildings.”

As regards the area of Falassarna, Mr Koukourakis stressed that from this year barriers will be installed to prevent vehicles from going down to the beach and private parking lots are being prepared around it as has been done at Elafonisi.

For Balos, although the municipal parking area is almost ready, the planned purchase of the electric buses to transport visitors and the hiring of staff have been delayed for lack of funds. However, it is estimated that with the implementation of the action plans and the contribution of other bodies, the problem will be solved, as a sum of €550,000 has been earmarked for Balos.

Balos-Gramvousa

In the action plan for Balos-Gramvousa, the responsibilities laid down for each of the bodies involved are as follows:

NECCA: Drawing up a management plan specifying the number and type of tourist and leisure boats, the number of berths and technical characteristics of mooring buoys , and specifying the number, type and location of recreational facilities (refreshment stall, sunbeds and umbrellas, movable elevated wooden walkways, toilet facilities etc).
Signage and maintenance of footpaths in accordance with the technical specifications.
Creation of a footpath around the “Frying pan”; creation of a 3-metre-wide free zone around the lagoon to allow the reproduction and survival of the bivalves which are in danger of disappearing; placing of information boards for visitors.
Also the creation of undersea dive routes between Imeri island and the Gramvousa peninsula.

Regional Authority: Installation of mooring buoys for visiting boats.
Recording and assessment of existing infrastructure (landing facilities on Imeri Gramvousa Island, at Balos etc).

Municipality of Kissamos: Installation and upgrading of existing facilities (refreshment bar, toilets).
Installation of barriers to control the entrance of vehicles, construction of parking lot (already done) and its operation, provision of electric minibuses to transport visitors to the start of the footpath.
Development and operation of a web platform for the purchase of electronic tickets.

Natural History Museum: Creation of a research and information centre on Imeri Gramvousa island.
Preservation and management of habitats and species of fauna and flora.

Decentralised Administration: Demolition of illegal structures and disposal of demolition materials on Imeri Gramvousa, Balos and elsewhere.

Falassarna

For Falassarna, the following actions are envisaged:

NECCA: Drawing up a management plan specifying the number of tourist and leisure boats, the number of mooring buoys, the technical specifications for refreshment stalls, sunbeds and umbrellas, wooden walkways, toilet facilities, etc.
Signage and maintenance of footpaths, information boards.
Together with the Harbour Board, drawing up a plan for guard duty and supervision.

Municipality of Kissamos: Prohibition of access for motor vehicles at various points on Falassarna beach.
Installation of new, and upgrading of existing facilities (refreshment stalls, toilets, wooden walkways).
Planning and application of a waste management system.
Provision of an all-terrain vehicle.

Regional Authority: Recording and assessment of existing recreational facilities.

Natural History Museum: Preservation and management of habitats and species of fauna and flora.

Elafonisi

The Ministerial decisions and Action Plan for Elafonisi comprise the following:

Regional Authority: Drawing up plans for the restoration of expropriated areas, recording and removal of invasive plant species, restoration of sand dunes chiefly in areas which are currently being used as illegal parking places.
Restoration of the Voulismeni wetland.

NECCA: Management plan for leisure boats, placing of mooring buoys, specification of capacity for scuba divers, designation of means for transporting solid and liquid waste, designation of users and routing of wheeled vehicles for servicing the facilities.
Signage and maintenance of footpaths, placing of information boards.
Creation of undersea dive routes.
Development and operation of a web platform for the purchase of electronic tickets.
Hiring of wardens with income from ticket sales, refreshment stalls, regular patrols, fines for infraction of environmental regulations together with the Harbour Board.

Natural History Museum: Charting of marine habitats, prohibition of bottom trawling in areas with seagrass (posidonia) meadows, general prohibition of fishing on coral reefs etc.
Preservation and management of habitats and species of fauna and flora.

Municipalities of Kandanos-Selino and Kissamos: Installation of mooring buoys (the responsibility for these is given to the Municipalities, while at Balos the same responsibility is assigned to the Regional Authority), installation and operation of refreshment facilities and road access.
Installation of barriers to prevent vehicle access to Voulismeni beach (already done by the Municipalities), and creation of parking areas (also already done).
Planning and application of a waste management system.
(Haniotika Nea, 17/02/25)