With this resolution, the Municipal Council of Central Corfu and the Diapontia Islands, in the presence of Environmental and Cultural Associations of the area and residents of the Diapontia Islands and Corfu, expresses its opposition to the proposed installation of a wind park at the Diapontia Islands.
The Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company set the deadline November 30, 2023 for public consultation on the Environmental Impact Assessment for the National Programme for the Development of Offshore Wind Parks, which includes our Diapontia Islands.
The plan envisions a polygon installation in the sea between our islands, Othoni, Erikoussa, and Mathraki, with the installation of dozens of 15 MW wind turbines, with the prevailing model having a rotor diameter of 236 metres and a height of up to 280 metres. In other words, their height will exceed the highest peaks of Erikoussa and Mathraki, which is entirely disproportionate to the landscape of our region.
We, who live on these islands, who have been forgotten for years and are referred to as "borderers" by the central authority, declare that such a development will be destructive with incalculable consequences for our environment, economy, and lives. Tourism, especially diving tourism that is developing in the region, and marine fishing with 150 professional fishermen who will completely lose their livelihoods, as well as the marine environment, are at risk.
They are planning without first examining how our region will be affected by the wind turbines. The overall plan and the Environmental Impact Assessment are being put up for public consultation without the National Spatial Strategy for the Marine Area and the anticipated Marine Spatial Planning Frameworks being established.
The proposed National Spatial Planning Framework for Renewable Energy Sources and the Environmental Impact Assessment significantly deviate from the relevant laws and regulations in force in other European countries regarding the distances of wind parks from the coasts. In the National Plan and the Strategic Study, a minimum distance of 1.5 nautical miles (NM) from the coast of Othoni is maintained, while the European average distance from coasts is 14 NM for existing projects and 33 NM for projects under licensing!
Furthermore, the transportation routes of our region's maritime traffic, which will undergo significant changes, are not taken into account. It is noteworthy that the transportation connection between Corfu and the Diapontia Islands was not considered at all in the study, as it crosses the polygon designated for the placement of the wind park. Additionally, this Strategic Study was prepared without the necessary Environmental Impact Assessment according to European Law. In fact, since February 15, 2023, the European Commission has sent our country a reasoned opinion due to its non-compliance with the directive on habitats (Directive 92/43/EEC) in the planning of wind park projects.
The avifauna is threatened with complete displacement, as is the biodiversity of our region. Since the legal requirements based on national and European law are not being adhered to, and there will be serious consequences on the physiognomy of the region, our lives, the local economy, and the environment, as well as on the protected habitats and species of the Natura 2000 network, which includes conservation zones for the Diapontia Islands.
Recently, a study on the decarbonisation of the Diapontia Islands has been completed, and the environmentally friendly energy autonomy of our islands has been initiated.
Our Municipal Council unanimously declares its categorical opposition to the establishment of the National Spatial Planning Framework for Renewable Energy Sources for the Diapontia Islands. It asserts that it does not recognise the validity of the plan currently under consultation and the accompanying Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment.
It is imperative to raise a strong and dynamic voice of resistance against what is being planned for our region without our consent.
We demand the exclusion of the marine area of the Diapontia Islands from any future installation of offshore wind turbines, and we reserve the right to take legal action in the event of such a development.
We call upon the political parties, the Members of Parliament representing our island, the newly elected mayors, and the new Regional Governor, as well as the Municipal Councils of the North and South, being the ultimate representatives of the will of the inhabitants of this place, to publicly declare their position on the ongoing initiatives. We also urge them to draft and co-sign this resolution, and to actively fight by expressing our collective opposition to the attempted destruction of the Diapontia Islands to the central government.
The municipal council declares its categorical opposition to the installation and operation of wind parks. We state that such a development would be destructive with incalculable consequences for our environment, economy, and lives. Tourism, particularly diving tourism thriving in the region, and marine fishing with 150 professional fishermen, would lose their work, putting both employment and the marine environment at risk.
We declare our commitment to support and participate in any activist protest and legal action aimed at preventing any wind turbine installation in the area.
We request collective bodies, popular assemblies, municipal and regional councils to express their opinions before any draft law is submitted to the relevant parliamentary committee. Additionally, within a reasonable timeframe, the new municipal council is urged to vote on a local development plan following the convergence of popular assemblies.
CHRISTINA GEREKOU
