At the World Economic Forum in Davos (Switzerland), Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis highlighted his government’s ambitions in terms of renewable energy. “We hope that in the medium term, Greece will become an exporter of green energy. We want to exploit wind energy with a focus on the Aegean Sea”he declared in mid-January.
Athens has committed to investing a third of the approximately 31 billion euros of the post-Covid-19 European recovery plan in the fight against global warming. A large part will be devoted to non-polluting energies, because the conservative government’s objective is for green electricity to reach 80% of total production, compared to less than 30% currently. In 2023, 153 new wind turbines will be connected to the network, which corresponds to investments of more than 600 million euros.
However, for several years, almost everywhere in Greece, in the north of the country or on the Cycladic islands of Andros or Tinos, movements called Free Mountains have been mobilizing against these installation projects. In Agrafa, on the heights of the center of the country, in 2019, the government had to send the police to escort the bulldozers who came to install hundreds of wind turbines.
Faced with opposition, the government does not back down and announces a new project for parks on islets or at sea. By 2050, it is planned that around 1,150 wind turbines, 280 meters high, will be installed at sea, notably near Alexandroupoli (north-east), off the coast of Crete and Corfu. But this project provokes strong reactions.
“A disaster for the ecosystem”
In Crete, the Lassithi Hoteliers Association estimates that “the installation of 75 wind turbines (…), just one nautical mile [1,8 kilomètre] from the coast, will create strong shocks for the local economy and society. (…) For nine years there will be a construction site in an area of outstanding natural beauty and which is internationally known for its luxury tourism”.
Opposite Corfu, the installation of wind turbines on the Diapontic Islands met with refusal from the region and the governor of the Ionian Islands called on the government to reconsider its plans. The municipal council of the island of Ikaria denounced “government projects, which only ensure the profitability of various business groups”.
For Maria Karamanof, president of the Chamber of Environment and Sustainable Development, “the development of wind turbines has become uncontrollable and clearly exceeds needs [du] country. It’s a disaster for [ses] landscapes and for the ecosystem ». She judges that the installation of wind farms “should be carried out with due measure”, but that ” This is not the case “.
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