Crete News - General

2 May 2008 - Cavo Sidero Protestors Gather 6000 Signatures - from ekathimerini.com
Two academics, an American and a Briton, who are spearheading a petition opposing the construction of a massive tourism complex in northwestern Crete, had managed to collect nearly 6,000 signatures by yesterday. Oliver Rackham, of Cambridge University, and Jennifer Moody, of the University of Texas, are trying to drum up support for their cause ahead of next Friday when the Council of State is to hear the case of local residents and ecologists against the Cavo Sidero project. Protesters argue that the project is “unsustainable” as it will demand “huge quantities of water.”

12 March 2008 - Cretan Resort Case to be Heard - from ekathimerini.com
Hundreds of Cretan residents and environmentalists protesting plans for the construction of a huge tourism complex on the island’s unspoilt northwestern coast will have their joint appeal against the project heard by the country’s highest administrative court tomorrow.
Protesters claim that the Cavo Sidero project – that would comprise five holiday villages, a string of luxury hotels and three golf courses – would damage the environment and be a heavy drain on water resources.
Campaigners had lobbied the government to boycott the project by British property development company Minoan Group (formerly Loyalward Limited), writing letters to 11 different ministries, but authorities have encouraged the 1.2-billion-euro investment.
Residents of Crete, much of which already suffers periods of drought in summer, say the plan would be devastating for the arid island. Even local farming cooperatives have joined the protest, complaining that they already struggle with dwindling water resources.
“The more time goes by, the more people begin to realize what is actually being planned for the area and start doubting the benefits of this initiative,” said Nikos Kyfonidis, president of the Ierapetra Ecological Group.
Kyfonidis doubts the validity of an agreement that has allowed Minoan to lease some 2,600 hectares for 80 years, saying that “new evidence throws into doubt the credibility of this controversial contract.”
The cause of local residents and environmentalists has been embraced by several foreign academics. Oliver Rackham, a Cambridge University ecology professor, told Britain’s Guardian newspaper that the project was “grotesquely unsuited to... one of the most arid places in Europe.” “The development is unsustainable because of the huge amounts of water that will be needed,” Rackham said.
Minoan Group’s chairman Christopher Egleton insists that the resort will be built on only 1 percent of the site, will be “fully sustainable” and will benefit the local community in the long term.

1 March 2008 - Earthquake Shakes Sitia
Two seaquakes took place in northern Aegean and Cretan Sea on Friday evening and Saturday morning respectively. The first one measured 4.6 on the Richter scale and was registered at 02:07 Saturday northwest off Siteia and 322 kilometres southeast of Athens. The second one also measured 4.6 on the Richter scale and was registered north of Samos, 270 kilometres east of Athens. Both seaquakes were surface quakes and as per seismologists no damages have been reported. Scientists are not concerned.

25 February 2008 - New ideas to boost Greek Agritourism
A new category of accommodation is currently being prepared and is planned to be added to Greece's tourism product under the «xenonas» (guest house) label. The newly designated facilities will offer full board services, and efforts will be made to differentiate it entirely from the customary «rooms to let» type of tourism business.
In addition, as part of efforts to upgrade the Greek tourism sector, plans are being made for the establishment of another new institution, the «agroktima» (farm), offering exactly what its title describes, a farm that can be visited by tourists. The two measures are part of efforts to create the appropriate legislative framework for tourism in the countryside, envisaged to effectively boost entrepreneurship in the specific subsector, but also in view of preparing the National Strategic Reference Framework of investment subsidies under the European Union's Fourth Community Support Framework.
Issues to be resolved include the possibility of the on-site use and sale of agricultural products, processed or not, produced by the farm owner, the proximity of guest houses with any animal shelters, as well as insurance aspects and registration of certain new types of jobs arising from such a new activity.