The Citizens' Movement of Paros, the Environmental Committee of the cultural association "Archilochos", and the Environmental Quality Observatory of Syros have been working closely together on the issue of beaches since the summer of 2023. In cooperation with the newly established Network for Sustainable Cyclades, they actively participated in the public consultation on the law entitled "Terms and conditions for the exploitation of public property in coastal areas and other provisions".

According to its authors, the Bill's stated intention is "the need to modernise the management of the country's coastal areas to ensure their public character and to allow their use in a manner beneficial to the national economy, protective of the environment and in accordance with the public interest."

From Common Good to Property

However, as is evident from the title of the Bill itself, which renames "public good" to "public property," and is confirmed by its stated purpose and, of course, the reading of its articles, this Bill had from the outset as its primary objective the more effective management of beaches as an element of profitability and nothing else. It intends to regulate the terms of the concession of using beaches to place umbrellas and sunbeds on terms that are more revenue-generating than previous laws have been.

Our approach to the issue of beaches has been based from the outset[1] on two basic principles:

Our beaches are, in principle, an integral part of the geomorphology and ecosystems of the areas and require absolute protection in this function, the disruption of which poses severe risks to the broader area. Given the dangers of the climate crisis, which have already been felt in our country through massive disasters related to the mismanagement of the coastal zone (such as in Halkidiki and Crete), it is essential that the coastal zone is treated as a valuable and vulnerable element of the environment and protected accordingly, as stipulated by the Constitution.

Beaches are a public good and should be accessible to everyone without hindrance. Whether you are a resident or a visitor, you have the right to enjoy the tranquillity and natural beauty that our beaches and coasts offer. It is essential to guarantee that everyone has free access to them and can enjoy them without any restrictions.

Only when the first two functions of beaches are fully guaranteed can they be used for other purposes, such as economic exploitation.

Based on these principles, which also led us to our summer mobilisations, we participated in the consultation, submitting our general comments and specific proposals and hoping they would be accepted, at least to some extent.

Pretextual consultation

The government ignored our proposals and continues unabated in its original direction, namely the economic exploitation of the beaches in every possible way, either through the collection of rental income or through the imposition of fines[2]. The consultation proved to be superficial.

The government ignored our proposals and continued unabated in its original line, namely the economic exploitation of beaches in any way possible, either through collecting revenue from rentals or imposing fines[2] The consultation proved to be a sham.

We are even puzzled by the meaning of the words used in the provisions of the Bill. Since when did "public interest" mean only the revenue (public) interest, but not the protection of our towns, villages, and countryside from the various dangers that threaten them because of the state's indifference to protecting the coastal zone from abusive anthropogenic interventions?

What article of the Bill is the basis for the alleged objective of 'protecting the environment' when "old seashores" (areas of land resulting from the movement of the coastline towards the sea), Natura 2000 beaches and even small, narrow stretches of sandy beach are given up for rent, with all the burdens this entails, and even with provisions that are more relaxed than those in force?

Environmental protection is being ignored

What can the expression "protection of the environment" mean when the government, instead of incorporating into Greek legislation the European directives that call for the protection of the coastal zone to a depth of 100 whole metres from the coastline, legislates purely for revenue-raising purposes, without the slightest concern for the protection of the coastal zone, allowing the exploitation from the first metre of the beach with the corresponding constructions, and even in the sea?

How is the right of citizens to freely access beaches ensured when even the municipalities, which represent the will and needs of local communities, have no real say in which beaches are rented out? They are only given a "consultative" role. Additionally, how is enough quality space for citizens guaranteed when the arbitrary occupation of beach space up to 49% of the legal concession is not considered a serious enough reason to terminate the concession contract? Also, when the limit of five metres of umbrellas from the waves was changed to just four metres last year, how is this fair to the citizens?

We agree with the joint statement of the eight environmental organisations published on 20 February[3]. However, we believe that the Bill not only does not answer our demands but further exacerbates the situation by nullifying previous protections.

The only positive element of the bill, namely the remote monitoring of legality with satellite imagery, may help collect fines, possibly even to control some excessive illegalities. But unfortunately, it is not sufficient to protect our natural wealth or guarantee the unimpeded public use and safety of the sites. Instead, it sacrifices them unabashedly on the altar of purely revenue-generating exploitation. - Where the phrase "revenue-generating exploitation" refers not only to revenue for the public interest but also to the entirely private one, that of the small and especially large companies that will "legally" occupy our exploitable beaches from this summer onwards.

As Yannis Spilanis, director of the Laboratory of Local and Island Development of the University of the Aegean, who participated in the consultation on behalf of the Network for Sustainable Cyclades, notes, "Despite the proclamations of sustainable development that we hear every day, what we see being implemented through actions is an unviable, dystopian growth."

Notes:

1. Our principles have been recorded in the Press Release we issued on 15/1/2024.
2. The Bill does indeed increase the fines for established violations, but these will not deter them because business profits are often so high that the risk of a fine is a very tolerable risk. The actual penalty, i.e. termination of the contract, is only provided if the space allocated is exceeded by 50%, and that is only after the second warning.
3. The full text of the joint statement of the 8 environmental organisations
4. Complaints about encroachment of the seashore with permanent structures have been a daily occurrence in recent years, and the Ministry's reaction has been non-existent. Even the much-publicised government intervention in Panormos Mykonos only came about after the attack on the righteous archaeologist Manolis Psarros and the public outcry that followed.