Abandonment of infrastructure projects for privatization leads to serious water shortages

Serious problems of water shortages are observed in many islands of our country and in Attica due to the abandonment of infrastructure projects over the past 15 years, as well as the refusal of the current government to invest in order to make it easier for “investors” to privatize water resources.

In particular, a significant drop in water levels compared to 2022 is observed in the artificial Lake Mornos in Central Greece, according to an analysis of satellite data conducted by the Beyond operational unit of the Institute of Astronomy, Astrophysics, Space Applications and Remote Sensing of the National Observatory of Athens.

A Sentinel-2 satellite image taken on July 2, 2023, showed that the lake's total surface area was about 16.5 km², while on June 26, 2024, it was estimated at about 12.8 km², which is 15-20% less than the average for the corresponding period since 2010.

The area of ​​the artificial Lake Mornos during this period is estimated to be the smallest since 2010, when very high-resolution satellite observations began. The artificial lake Mornos is the main reservoir of Athens.

“Our big problem is that water shortages will get worse in the coming years, based on what we know about the climate crisis.”“We are working to strengthen our position as a global leader in the fight against terrorism,” said Environment and Energy Minister Theo Skylakakis on July 26.

“This year, the relevant ministry is taking measures, and at the same time, we are preparing a whole strategy on the water issue, which we will discuss in the government. The strategy has several parts, one of which is that we are looking at the impact of the climate crisis on a regional basis, because so far we have had a general picture, and a number of actions will be announced,” he emphasized.

The climate crisis is of course a pretext to hide their incompetence and “cunning”: they do not invest, they only sell. After energy and telecommunications, water is the next object to pass into the hands of transnational corporations and domestic monopolies.

Serifos Island has 15 days of water left

The problem of water shortage is even more acute on the Greek islands. The General Secretariat of Civil Defense has already declared a state of emergency in 14 Greek municipalities. The list includes 5 municipalities of Crete (SerifosSifnos, Leros, Poros, Spetses), the municipality of Sami on Kefalonia. Experts note particularly alarming dynamics on the islands. Tourism is largely to blame (again):

• Firstly, on some islands during the holiday seasons the “population” increases by 2-3 times.
• Secondly, tourists are a wasteful people.

“We must not forget the completely different consumption of a tourist: a local resident at home consumes 150 liters per day, while a tourist consumes from 250 to 400 liters per person per day, of which 80 liters are spent on using the pool and the same on watering.”” said Elissavet Feloni, a lecturer at the University of West Attica.

She believes that Greece urgently needs to change its water consumption culture, starting with the introduction of official restrictions. As for the islands, Feloni recommends first of all introducing restrictions on the construction of swimming pools.

There is also a need to intervene in industry: a transition to so-called intelligent farming is needed, combining modern technologies and data to optimize existing agricultural activities.

But ultimately, change must begin with education and popularization of the issue among the growing generation:“We need to develop a culture of water conservation at all levels. Naturally, this starts with education in schools.”

P.S. Advice from the author: instead of allocating one and a half billion a year to absolutely useless activities “Ministry of Climate crisis“, invest this money in the construction and development of reservoirs. After all, in winter there is more than enough water in Greece. It is only necessary to conserve it wisely. But for this you need to think and work, and this is much more difficult than sawing the budget of the beloved ministry of Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

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