Opinions: Legalizing arbitrary actions under the guise of… ecology

“It is not easy to reset the counter and overturn previous policies.” These words, spoken by Deputy Minister of Environment Yannis Tsironis, essentially sum up the direction taken by the new political leadership of the Ministry of Productive Reconstruction in resolving the pressing issues it faces.

In essence, the new political leadership is evidently abandoning SYRIZA’s pre-election promises of radical change and settling for superficial changes that were already in the ministry’s drawers.

The arbitrary decisions, gold mining in Skouries, Chalkidiki, and the development of the Elliniko site appear to be the spearhead of the policy that will be pursued, without, however, giving the impression -at least so far- of a reversal of what has been done so far in the areas of responsibility of the ministry.

Mr. Tsironis gave a first glimpse of what he intends to do on these issues yesterday, during an informal meeting with journalists.

Regarding the legalization of unauthorized buildings, he stated that the existing Law 4178/13 will be amended with a view to protecting urban planning and improving environmental compensation in heavily burdened areas, using the reduction of the building coefficient as a tool. However, he assured that the extension granted for the submission of applications for inclusion in the law until February 2016 will remain in force. He added that for those who have joined the law and submitted the required supporting documents, there is no question of changing the status of their inclusion in the law and they will not be affected.

He said that the ministry’s services estimate that 50% of the owners of unauthorized buildings who could join the existing scheme never showed up. Twenty percent have proceeded to the final stage of the legalization process, and 30% are in the initial stage, meaning they have not submitted the file with the supporting documents.

Agreement for Elliniko

Mr. Tsironis also raised the issue of the price of the contract for the development of Hellinikon, emphasizing that it is ten times lower than the actual price. However, he did not raise the issue of canceling the contract with Lamda Development, stressing that the relevant study should first be checked to see if it is compatible with the new Athens regulatory framework and existing uses.

He emphasized that it is not possible to cancel signed contracts, but basically to check the licenses that have been granted for the project. His statements are characteristic: “We don’t like Attica as it has been rebuilt either. We are accepting a reality. We cannot simply cancel a contract because we want to. We have to see how far along it has progressed.”