‘EPIRUS & HYDROCARBON FRACKING’ or ‘ENVIRONMENT & OIL COMPANIES’
In Epirus these days, there is a lot of mobility in terms of fracking. Residents, municipal authorities, collectivities, associations, unions, scientists are once again against oil companies and oil exploitation sites. If Epirus is “damaged”, this will lead the way to the whole Western Greece (Ionian, Peloponnese), up to Crete. The impact on the environment, the decisions of the Council of State, the current mobilizations. How much can the environment take? What does 3,500 meters drilling depth mean? What teaches us the example of neighboring Italy in Basilicata, twin region with Epirus, but also elsewhere in the world? Paradises where water has turned black, mortality has risen to 300%, corporate “gifts” to once-happy and self-sufficient residents, animals with earthen bowels and an ominous life.
The Epirus residents are resisting by all means the imminent destruction of their homeland by hydrocarbon fracking.
Citizens, institutions, fraternities and associations brought yesterday a PETITION FOR ANNULMENT before the Council of State against the planned exploratory drilling and future mining in the Kourenta mountains.
The grounds for annulment:
International, EU and national legislation to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is violated
European nature protection legislation is in breach (Directive 92/43)
Air legislation is in breach (Directive 2008/50)
Water legislation is in breach (Directive 2000/60)
This battle concerns us all and must be won
We hope this time the Council of State will not be “fooled”… In the corresponding appeal for the seismic surveys in #HellenicTrenchSOS, the decision of the Council of State was announced weeks after the start of the surveys, while the claims on which it was based were retracted a few days later.
In the studio, we talked about what is happening now in Epirus with Anastasia Goliomyti, an economist, ecofeminist, activist for years on this issue.