Same ol’ Mr. Soufli

Everyone’s favorite Environment and Public Works Minister Giorgos Souflias was all talk, partial to listening (see video) and short on action in November, which sums up Parliament’s effectiveness in general.

He’s still blaming local municipalities for not monitoring installations and rooting out violators of environmental legislation. But it’s hard to take him seriously when he and Karamanlis ignore a 75 percent majority of Greeks who want a proper environment ministry now, instead of the three-year delay that the government claims is necessary for all EU-funded projects to be complete. Based on past history, it’s safe to say that EU-funded projects will take a lot longer than three years to complete, and an environment ministry by that time will be irrelevant since measures are already a decade overdue.

With the present and future covered, Soufli also defended environmental inaction of past governments.

Acheloos

More environmental fines were imposed, but no real action. So far, violators include two quarries, the Public Power Corporation (DEH), the S&B firm on the island of Milos, Thessaly Steelworks, Athens International Airport, Hellenic Petroleum and Larco. Most had their fines reduced on appeal.

Animal welfare

Delicate ecosystems are affected by the smallest change — anything from amoeba to plankton.

The urbanization of rural and coastal areas catering to increased tourism, and residents from abroad seeking a second home, continue to infringe on nature and put a strain on resources (petrol, electricity, water) and food supplies (overfishing, imports of meat and produce, as crops wither in the face of climate change).

Humans and wildlife also don’t live in harmony. This month, an endangered brown bear was found mutilated and Egyptian fruit bats were shot “for fun” on Cyprus.

Animals are helpless gentle creatures on this Earth, and it is we who are intruding on their territory. Can we at least leave them alone and find some healthy hobbies?

Asopos

There were more fines imposed on polluters of the Asopos River and threats by Mr. Soufli that violators could be temporarily or permanently shut down. But as I reported last month, the real problem isn’t solved — the government has no plan in place for disposing of 200,000 metric tons of industrial waste per year.

Sink on you crazy Sea Diamond

Eight months after Louis Cruise Lines’ Sea Diamond sank off the shore of Santorini, nothing has been done. On November 21, bidding was opened to companies wishing to handle the extraction of 450 tons of fuel, harmful substances from air conditioning units, rotting computer equipment and hydraulic fluid.

There’s been plenty of blame spread amongst various parties already, so whoever wins the open tender should have expertise, immaculate PR and lawyers standing by.

Forest — where’s the damn register?

Anyone following environmental issues or drawn by the wildfires back in August know that Greece is the only EU country without a forest registry. Without a forest registry, it cannot enforce laws or prosecute anyone involved in illegal construction. Not to mention, the EU is quite unhappy and still warning Greece to not redraw its forest maps.

Speaking of land grabbing, Soufli has sternly warned that any new illegal homes will be demolished without hesitation. But those with established illegal homes shouldn’t worry since nothing is being done.

Volunteers from local schools, environmental groups and municipalities, with the support of SKAI, began a mass replantation of up to 15,000 trees in the eastern Athens area of Kalyvia. Reforestation of Mount Pendeli and Rafina started November 23 by the Boy Scout Association, though Parnitha — a badly needed forest in Athens that was devastated this summer — was not included.

Instead, the foothills of Parnitha struggle with the illegal dumping of rubble containing hazardous material. Up to 100,000 tons of rubble is generated in Attica daily and 5 million tons annually in the whole of Greece.

Kifissos

A last-ditch proposal by five architects to clean up Kifissos River and regenerate the area around it was embraced by local authorities and promoted by SKAI.

Lake Koroneia

Thanks to illegal over-irrigation, experts have determined that Lake Koroneia is on the verge of drying up again (it happened previously in 2002). Fines have been imposed, but EU funds in the amount of 24 million to permanently remedy this issue haven’t been utilized.

Recycling

Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis, who claimed to be a man of few words during pre-election campaigns (and looks a bit like CNN’s Richard Quest in this photo), has been talking big about making plastic bags a thing of the past as part of his recycling initiative, even quoting stats I previously presented. But so far, it’s only talk. (Interesting note: The City of Athens is a frequent visitor to this site.)

And while the mayor continues his obsession with making Athens more like Paris — which I pray doesn’t include race riots and public transport strikes (oh wait, we already have those) — consumers are still ignorant about how to sort recyclables into existing blue bins, though claim more are needed.

It must be said that ‘recycling’ is more PR than a real practice since Greece sends 90 percent of garbage to landfills (only Poland ranked lower).

And no matter how much is recycled in Greece, manufacturers stubbornly opt to use new materials so the glass, cardboard and aluminum processed for reuse is still going into landfills. Why? They see it as too much trouble and costly to change processes, and many consumers see recycled materials as “dirty” and therefore don’t back companies into a corner to reform and become green. i.e. Do you think about what brand to buy based on green practices, or do you just buy the one you want or whatever is cheapest? If I taught you what to look for, would you do it? The consumer speaks his mind with his purchase.

Greece’s inhabitants may support the environment in theory, but not in conscious daily living.

Uh oh, EU

The month started with news that Greece lags behind the rest of the EU in environmental issues, which was quickly countered by Karamanlis. This was followed by being ranked 6th worse developed country worldwide for CO2 emissions (yes, even worse than the USA with its 265 million people).

And while Mr. Soufli says EU-funded projects need to be completed before an environment ministry can be established, his public works ministry refuses to account for how those funds are being spent.

Back in Belgium, the European Commission (EC) got its 500,000-euro refund for a greening project it supported in Perama, upon discovering that 90 percent of 70,000 trees were dead from negligence in 2005. An appeal by the municipality was denied.

And European Commissioner Stavros Dimas warned Zacharo’s mayor, who signed off on plans to develop the area, to regenerate the Natura areas damaged by wildfires in August or lose subsidies.

Rehabilitate rural areas

The plan to rehabilitate fire-stricken areas was unveiled by the Ministry of Agriculture. It includes 650 million euros for:

- Leaving burnt trees for two years
- Replanting in Arcadia, Achaia, Ileia, Corinth, Laconia and Messinia in southern Greece and the island of Evia
- Attention to 223,000 hectares that remain at serious risk of erosion
- Employing the unemployed to assist in these programs
- Revitalizing local rural economies that see 110 dairy producers and 177 olive oil plants reducing production and suffering financially

Too much dumping

This is a beautiful country, and the government needs to revamp, reform, recycle, reuse and retain an effective waste program to protect its legacy or illegal dumping/polluting will continue.

In addition to the dumping of toxic rubble near Parnitha, there are manufacturers dumping in olive groves, gold mines producing toxic waste and rogue quarries operating in a number of places that include the forestland of Mt. Imittos in eastern Athens.

There’s been talk of additional fines and 24-hour surveillance to clean up Greece, specifically Athens, but we shouldn’t need babysitting if in fact the majority of residents in Greece are as concerned about the environment as polls suggest.

Talk is cheap, it’s time to walk the talk.

For related stories, see “Environment.”
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Photos from recycle-more.co.uk (EU’s RRR), marietta.edu (bat), abcnews.com (ship), euroleague.net (kaklamanis), ekathimerini.com (rubble on Parnitha; Kifissos)

Mr. Soufli strikes again

Environment and Public Works Minister Giorgos Souflias started October by blaming a town planning office and his civil engineer for not having the proper permit to build one of two vacation homes. He claimed to be unaware.

He met with public officials in the area of the polluted Asopos river, and applauded measures to supply residents with clean water from another source and crack down on companies illegally dumping waste. However, he failed to address the consistent monitoring of toxins and the 50 municipalities in Ileia, where local water was polluted in the aftermath of August wildfires.

The mayors of Hellenikon, Argyroupolis, Alimos and Glyfada requested that Souflias not sell off 100 hectares of the former Hellenikon airport to developers for a purported “green fund,” with suspicions the money will be used to plug shortcomings in the budget, not for maintenance after the park is built in 2010. Souflias would not back down, decided to refuse EU funds and continued this sell-off plan originally (and ironically) drawn up by PASOK.

He quadrupled the fine on firms harming the environment from 500,000 to 2 million euros and increased the number of state inspectors from 19 to 45, but said the enforcement of fines and constant monitoring are the responsibility of local governments. Local governments claim to not have the staff or budget.

Asopos River

Excessive and illegal polluting of the Asopos River in northern Athens is an ongoing issue spanning several years. The water has high levels of potentially carcinogenic depleted chromium, and local residents use this as their main source. Ten manufacturers were fined and threatened with the revocation of licenses, and more offenders with secret dumping pipes will be revealed once officials conclude their investigation.

The usual suspects are behind solving this issue — bureaucracy, corruption, contradictory laws that make it difficult to enforce punishment, various people calling for studies that delay implementation and cleanup, the state blaming local government and local government blaming the state.

At the heart of the problem, Greece still has no plan and nowhere to properly dispose or treat 200,000 metric tons of industrial waste per year, thus the majority is dumped into the sea, the Asopos and several other rivers. Therefore, it doesn’t matter how many fines are imposed and paid, the real issue remains unchanged.

Residents have been promised clean water from another the Mounos River by year’s end. In the meantime, Greece has again been taken to the European High Court of Justice for not being swift in cleaning up Asopos and implementing a nationwide solution after past warnings.

Acheloos River

A plan to divert water from the Acheloos River to Thessaly to irrigate crops was designed 24 years ago, never implemented and respective sides are still divided on benefits, detriments and long-term effects on the environment.

Reducing the water supply to a river can only upset the balance of a delicate ecosystem. Salinity, wetlands, wildlife and landscape will all be affected. With time and climate change, the sources supplying the Acheloos will be less and cause other rivers, such as one of the most polluted rivers in Europe (Pineios) to worsen.

On the other side are farmers struggling to stay afloat and a Greek economy fighting to keeps its place in the cotton trade, among others.

To see stats on the Acheloos project, click here.

Lake Koroneia

Lake Koroneia is another environmental issue, brewing since 1987 when cyanobacterial toxins were found to be in excess of the World Health Organization (WHO) standard. However, the EU had set no maximum levels at that time, and Greece had no regulations in place to comply with WHO’s recommendation.

It was only until 2001 when Greece joined the EU that it could no longer claim ignorance on the issue, which was documented in past studies carried out by biologists at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 1999-2000. At that time, Lake Kastoria was the primary focus.

Since then, Koroneia has suffered. It dried up, was part of an EC request to protect it, in EU High Court, saw nearly 30,000 birds (some protected species) and hundreds of fish die, was in EU High court again, saw more birds die this year and was sent to EU High Court again this month.

A plan drawn up in 2004 after the first decimation of birds was never implemented, despite 24 million euros being made available.

Oak trees

The fact oak trees are a poor form of firewood hasn’t stopped people from chopping them down for precisely that purpose, instead of leaving them to absorb carbon dioxide and to green both urban and rural areas.

Greece’s poor management of forests and the lack of a forest registry to enforce the law have aided in the reduction of forested areas from one-third to one-quarter of this country.

Red deer

The reduction in forested areas has made the red deer vulnerable to night hunters and poachers, who have purportedly killed 50 since the end of August. Hunting is forbidden in burned areas of forests, and red deer are a protected species. Hunting organizations have denied these allegations.

Mt. Parnitha

A forestry expert has confirmed that regrowth is progressing nicely.

For related articles, see “Environment.”

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Photos from mensamagazine.gr (asopos and koroneia), skai.gr (soufli), in.gr (deer/parnitha)

Some choose vegetarianism for religious, spiritual or medical reasons, some because it’s trendy. But my motivation is based purely on respect for the environment, the planet, my fellow man and animals.

But how can I call myself an animal lover when I still meat once a week?

When you’re green, you grow

Twenty years ago, I read a book called “Diet for a Small Planet,” which taught me that using land to grow fruits and vegetables instead of raising a few animals would preserve rainforests and ecosystems otherwise cleared for livestock, emit less carbon (packaging, transportation, etc.) and erase starvation from the planet. Whatever need there was for a solution almost two decades ago has only grown stronger.

But if you were born and bred with meat as a part of culture, tradition or habit, as I was, it’s difficult to give it up.

I like a good filet mignon on occasion, and there’s no one who likes fish more than me, though I’m sure I could change my psychology and convince myself otherwise. But for some it’s hard to imagine Thanksgiving without turkey or Easter without lamb, and I understand that.

Going vegie requires vigilance, to ask questions and read packages carefully since even the average marshmallow contains an animal product called gelatin.

At times, it also requires endurance. The first time I quit cold (err) turkey, my parents gave me such a hard time that it was unpleasant to eat with them. Comments like, “Oh, you think you’re so much better than us,” “you’re just doing it for attention,” “why can’t you just be normal like the rest of us?” In addition to breaking a habit, continuing to be responsible for cooking my family’s meals (with meat) and shaking off personal criticism twice daily only added to the challenge.

Whatever relief I found in not cooking meat for others and going to a restaurant was quashed by the lack of variety in menu choices. I often ate salad, while my antagonists snickered.

I gave up my quest after five months, and my family slipped back into its comfort zone and declared victory.

Who doesn’t like options?

Over the years, it’s become easier if more acceptable to be vegetarian, especially in some parts of the world where it’s been a way of life for decades.

In Sweden, there are a ton of vegetarian options at every restaurant and every grocery store. I’m not saying soy dogs are delicious (they’re not), but it’s nice to know I can get reasonably priced tofutti, rice milk or barley (Korn) patties that taste a lot like chicken if I want them.

I loved being in India where I ate no meat, no wheat and no cheese. The food, especially in the South, was so amazing that I didn’t notice these three elements were missing. Even my meat loving fiancé gave up flesh, but for a very different reason — we call it the Tandoori chicken incident.

After more than a month of eating this way, I felt healthier, slimmer and harmonious. But when I came back to Greece, everything I ate caused me to break out in hives to the point I could not sleep or breathe. Trying twice to find an allergist at a public hospital was fruitless, so we consulted two private allergists who asked, “so why are you keeping a food diary?” Duh. In any case, the experience taught me how impure everyday food can be.

Since then I’ve also managed to convert my meat and potatoes fiancé into a mostly vegetarian mate who likes Brussel sprouts and eats meat twice a week.

Meat me in Greece

The first time I went to the meat market in Monastiraki ten years ago, I didn’t eat meat for a month.

My grandfather was a butcher, so I’d seen tongues and didn’t expect anything to be encased in Styrofoam and plastic, but I didn’t think there’d be blood running in the street or heads hanging from a hooks with eyeballs staring back. And it was summer, so the smell was bellissimo.

Occasionally there’s a blood clot or dangling artery in my chicken breast, but nothing that has ever shaken me to the point of no return, which I understand happens to people who turn vegetarian.

Today, something happened that pushed me one step closer.

Some months ago, I saw a Globe Trekker episode featuring Vietnam and Laos where host Zay Harding drank snake blood, caught goats blindfolded in his quest for a wife and ate eggs that I can only describe as delicacies. I remember feeling both disgust and admiration because everything he did was without hesitation and without making faces.

In what can only be described as a “Zay Harding moment,” an egg from my future mother-in-law’s village exploded in a boiling pot to reveal a half grown chick head with feathers and filled the kitchen with an odor that was half rotten egg, half dead animal. And of course I was alone, so I couldn’t faint or pass the deed to my fiancé.

I threw away the rest of our eggs, can’t look at the “dead chicken pot” and am fasting now. Zay, give me a call.

Related stories

“10 Easy ways to save the planet“
“Bottled water is tap water, so WTF?“
“How much does garbage cost?“
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Photo from PETA