Few problems threaten Greece’s resilience as much as drought. Water scarcity constitutes a major challenge for the farmer, the citizen and the future of the country. The 36 billion of the Recovery and Resilience Fund were, obviously, a golden opportunity to shield our society and its prospects against the problem. It did not happen. The lack of foresight, the absence of planning and the incompetence of the government are inconceivable, PASOK denounces.
The first spot of PASOK – Movement for Change in the series “Greece 2.0: The great lost national opportunity” almost self-evidently had to concern drought. These are things you will never hear the government talk about. But we are talking about them.
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PASOK and the Movement’s person responsible for the Recovery Fund KTE, Pavlos Geroulanos, studied exhaustively the texts of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0” and prepared a “Comparative Study of RRF Measures – before and after”, comparing the original text of “Greece 2.0” with the current one, after its successive downward revisions by the government. The results are revealing: almost 2/3 of the measures of “Greece 2.0” appear to be outside their original objective, from considerably to completely (removal). Among them are also the following 3 measures that directly concern drought and water management.
Because the entire Comparative Study is based word for word on texts of the Greek government itself, we call on it to answer whether these are valid and how it justifies the reductions or even removals that it itself requested in each measure of “Greece 2.0”.
It is not only that they created a bad and inadequate plan for the country for the Recovery and Resilience Fund, without consultation, without national planning. It is also that they proved incapable of implementing even this bad plan. “Greece 2.0” is the proof of failure and ineffectiveness of the supposedly executive state.
Measure 16285 – “Investment: Investments in the national irrigation network through public-private partnership programs” which investment was later renamed to “Reform: National water strategy”.
What was initially envisaged (July 2021)
According to the original “Greece 2.0” plan, the investment was “a holistic program for the upgrading and modernization of the national regulatory framework of the agro-environmental sector, improvement and restoration of land. These investments will strengthen the resilience and competitiveness of the agricultural sector, boost the supply and quality of available water, rationalize water consumption, mitigate the risks of salinization and desertification and address the issue of the conservation and protection of biodiversity and natural habitats”.
Milestone 316 of the original “Greece 2.0” even provided by the end of 2025 for “Irrigation: completion and start of operation of the 18 projects” in the national irrigation network and “completion based on a certificate by an independent engineer approved by the Ministry of Rural Development”.
“Greece has essentially had to launch a major coherent plan of irrigation projects since the 1960s,” Prime Minister Mr. Mitsotakis had stated on November 8, 2021, and had added: “After some decades, we are once again coming and placing the major projects concerning water management at the forefront of our policy priorities… Today we have the financing tools to be able—in different conditions, more difficult due to climate change—to turn into reality a project that has a nationwide footprint and addresses chronic problems of lack of irrigation water in many areas of the country”.
And he had concluded by saying: “Here I want to make it absolutely clear that for this plan to be implemented, speed and great compliance with the timetables that we ourselves set are required. Thodoris is right when he says that the resources of the Recovery Fund come with several conditionalities, not only as to the way they are utilized, but also as to the procedures for their utilization. Therefore, my dear Secretary General, the burden of responsibility passes to us to keep the timetables, mature the studies, obtain the environmental permits and launch these projects with the speed and consistency that the funding resources impose. But the participation of private individuals is also of crucial importance, because the whole logic of the Recovery Fund is precisely to mobilize private capital… for the first time we will use it on this scale in such projects”.
Which projects were we talking about? According to the documents on the “Greece 2.0” website as well as the government’s answer to a relevant question by PASOK – Movement for Change in 2024, the list of the 18 projects certainly included the following:
- Minagiotiko Dam and irrigation network, Messinia Prefecture (budget: 33.5 million euros).
- Modernization of the irrigation network of the Local Organization for Land Improvements of Tavropos, Karditsa Prefecture (budget: 36.7 million euros).
- Irrigation Network of Yperia, Larissa Prefecture - Orfana, Karditsa Prefecture (budget; 26 million euros).
- Transfer and Distribution of Water from the Nestos river to the Xanthi plain for irrigation purposes (budget: 54 million euros).
- Chochlakia reservoir – Ag. Ioannis Ierapetra Dam in Lasithi Prefecture (budget: 22.5 million euros).
- “Almopaios Irrigation Network” in the Giannitsa plain (budget: 34,500,000 euros).
The list also included the following:
- Dipotamia Kastoria dam and network.
- Dam at Bougazi Domokou and irrigation network, Fthiotida Prefecture.
- Dam at Livadi Arachovas, irrigation network and hydroelectric plant, Boeotia Prefecture.
- TOEV of Ilia Prefecture (Undergrounding of Flow Networks (Canalettes) of TOEV Amaliadas, A’ Pyrgou, Pelopiou & Epitaliou, Ilia Prefecture).
- Lower Acheloos Irrigation Network, Aitoloakarnania Prefecture.
- Dam at the location: Dilofos “Kaklitzorema” and Irrigation network (Larissa Prefecture)
- Dam at the location: Narthraki “Loukatzorema” and Irrigation network (Larissa Prefecture)
- Neochoritis Dam and irrigation network (Trikala Prefecture).
- Grizanou Dam and irrigation network (Trikala Prefecture).
- Achladochoriou Dam and irrigation network (Trikala Prefecture).
- Titanos Dam (weir) of Trikala and irrigation network.
What is envisaged today
Of the 18 irrigation projects that according to the original “Greece 2.0” were supposed to be ready by the end of 2025 through PPPs, none remained in the Recovery and Resilience Fund. After the successive revisions, the objective of measure 16285 has changed completely and now consists “in the approval of the national water strategy and the issuance of a legal act for the extension of the competences of EYDAP (Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company) and EYATH (Thessaloniki Water Supply and Sewerage Company)”…
Measure 16898 – Investment: Water supply projects
According to the original “Greece 2.0” plan, “the investment consists of water supply projects in areas of Western Greece and the islands of Lesvos and Corfu. The objective of the investment is to cover the high water supply needs during the summer months and address leakage problems”.
What was initially envisaged (July 2021)
Milestone 76 even provided by the end of 2025 for the “completion of three water supply sub-projects: a) Preveza, Arta, Lefkada, b) Corfu and c) Lesvos: completion of water intake and diversion works, pipelines, storage and pumping stations and entry into operation”. Their budget was estimated at 145 million euros for the project in Preveza, Arta, Lefkada, at 116 million euros for Lesvos and at 170 million euros for Corfu.
What is envisaged now
Nothing. The measure has been completely removed from “Greece 2.0”, as have all the projects within the framework of this specific measure.
Measure 16850 – Investment: Drinking water supply and saving infrastructure
What was initially envisaged (July 2021)
Milestone 74 of “Greece 2.0” initially provided by the end of 2025 for the “completion of all projects, including the following: 1: Water supply infrastructure in seven areas. 2: Three desalination units. 3: Telemetry–telecontrol projects for detecting leaks in water supply networks. 4: Procurement of digital water meters. 5: Water-saving actions in at least 45,000 households and 10,000 businesses”.
It also provided for “the certification of the completion report of an independent engineer by the Ministry of Environment and Energy” as an indicator of quality of implementation of the milestone.
What is envisaged today
Milestone 74 now provides the following by the end of 2025: “Execution of at least 50 water supply and water-saving infrastructure projects, including the following: a) construction of water supply infrastructure in at least seven areas and at least three desalination units b) installation of telemetry–telecontrol systems for leak detection in water supply networks and c) installation of digital water meters”.
One observes that the clear wording in the original “Greece 2.0” for “completion of all projects” by the end of 2025 has become, after the successive revisions, simple “execution of projects”. Of course, no certification completion report is any longer provided for as a quality indicator of project implementation. And there is no longer the specific quantitative target of “at least” 45,000 households and 10,000 businesses that existed in the original “Greece 2.0”…