Cruising through the debris of the Ochi mountain
The picture we had from our recent visit to Oche was disheartening but expected. The wind turbines near Platanistos and Milia are erected one after another, while at the same time more pylons of high voltage are installed. You have the feeling that you are in another place from what you were familiar with, as the natural landscape is replaced by iron structures that dominate the horizon due to their size. The St. Mamma substation is of the order of magnitude of the substation in the plain of Karystos. High-voltage lines pass a few meters above the shepherd's huts. A wind turbine has been erected, having it's background the figurative Giouda summit (alt. 1328), a tragic example of disrepute for natural monuments ...
We followed the road that has been hacked around the peak of Ochi (above 1000m.), observing how it has changed the draining of water with the opening of new roads. Where once the mysterious silence of the Alpine belt prevailed, now there is a road for heavy vehicles. We arrived under Lakka Boukoura location, where roads have been cut in inaccessible places, for access to the Spilia and Platanos wind farms. The scenery here has been massacred with vertical cuts of many meters and endless stacks of debris have been thrown into the slopes. Some other time we'll go towards to Cavonoro to see more horrific scenes ...
The unprecedented destruction of the natural environment of our country is under way. What nature has bequeathed to us and remained unchanged in the millennia, it is demolished within a few months. Bad news have just begun, with the Italian company (some of it's executives admitted informally that such a project in their home country could not be implemented!) and will continue with other Greek companies until the whole horizon of South Karystia is covered with wind turbines.
The local community is still embarassed and divided. Many people in the private debates seem dissatisfied with the situation, but they do not react publicly. On the other hand, a part of locals earn money from labor and land rent. However, this profit is temporary as long as the construction period lasts and land rents will certainly not be guaranteed after the cadastre has been approved.
It will not take long to show that our tolerance to the conversion of our area to an industrial wind zone, leads to a deadlock and finally the decline of South Karystia region. The next day, the site will not lend itself to any kind of economic activity. It will be impassable and indifferent to tourists and useless for breeders and beekeepers. Without being aware, we let the place be turned into an unwanted place for living or taking vacations.
As long as we tolerate the largest accumulation of wind turbines in our country, we will plunge into a swamp from which there is no salvation. It takes many voices to rise to take us seriously and stop the evil here. All that remains for us so worse things do not happen, is the massive live protes: NO MORE WIND TURBINES IN SOUTH KARYSTIA!
Related video:
For the "Society for the Protection of the Environment of Karystos"
Chr. Bereti – Chairman
Th. Biniaris - Secretary
