BLOCKAGE OF ILLEGALITIES FOR AKAMAS PARK

 Filenews 8 August 2022 - by Angelos Nicolaou

Last Friday could be described as a landmark day, for two emblematic works linked to Akamas. These are the projects for the improvement of the road network and the creation of visitor service hubs, through which the planning of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment for the Akamas National Forest Park (EDPA) is largely implemented. These projects aim on the one hand to relieve the pressures on the sensitive ecosystems of the area from the high traffic and on the other hand to improve the experience and safety of visitors to the Park. Both projects are co-funded by the Cohesion Policy Program "THALEIA 2021 – 2027" of the European Union.

Specifically, last Friday, the Tenders Council of the Ministry of Agriculture, gave the green light to the Department of Forests to proceed with the implementation of the contract concerning the improvement of the road network at the EDPA. The project has a total budget of €7.5 million. These are the roads that serve the most important numbers of visitors, from Aspros Potamos in Peyia, which is the main entrance of EDPA, to Lara and from Toxeftra to Lipatis, including Avakas. Specifically, the road network will be improved in three phases, as follows: a) Aspros Potamos-Toxeftra-Lara, 6.6 Km, b) Circular Laras, 2.7 Km, and c) Toxeftra – Abacus – Lipatis, 4.1 Km.

According to the presentations made on behalf of the Department of Forests and the Ministry of Agriculture, this project has a triple targeting. The primary goal is to make the movement of visitors to the park safer. After all, accidents are often observed, which, in addition to the human factor, are also attributed to the unsuitability of the road network.

The second objective of the project is to direct visitors to specific routes, through which they will safely approach the points of interest as well as their service nodes. In this way, the movement of visitors to illegal or unregistered roads will be avoided, which, in addition to creating risks for their safety, leads in many cases to the fragmentation of the sensitive ecosystem of the area. To this end, in parallel with the improvement of the road network, the Department of Forests will cut off access to illegal roads with a length of more than 100 km. The third objective of the project is to minimize the degradation of Akamas' ecosystems by dust.

Operation of service nodes

Last Friday, the competition for the creation of the service hubs for EDPA visitors was also published. The total budget of the project is expected to amount to €6.6 million and provides for the creation of 14 junctions with lightweight structures, where visitors to the EDPA will be able to receive information about the Park, as well as basic services.