Filenews 25 August 2024
The president of the Green Movement, George Perdikis, asks in a letter to the Auditor General to examine the construction of a private house on the bed of the river Kryos in Pano Platres.
In detail, the relevant announcement:
As ecologists, we welcome the online reaction of the public and their participation in yesterday's event in Pano Platres, against the ongoing intervention in nature in recent years by the reckless building development.
We also welcome the statements of the President of the Limassol District Self-Government Organization and expect the immediate suspension of works (which are being done illegally since no building permit has been issued).
The positions of the Departments of Environment and Forests are positively assessed.
We hope that a solution will be found to the problem that arose from the imprudence of the authorities to prioritize the environment on the bank of the river Kryos, but also from the fact that there is no respect, not only for nature, but also for legal procedures.
In any case, the Green Movement decided to appeal to the Audit Office and the Auditor General, given that there was already an intervention by the Auditor General on a similar issue in 2022.
In a letter, the President of the Green Movement, Mr. George Perdikis, asks the Auditor General to examine the case of the construction of a private house in or despite the bed of the river Kryos in P. Platres in a way that irreparably affects the natural environment and the right of free access of the public to the public property constituted by the riverbed.
In particular, the Audit Office is expected to examine whether the planning permission for the construction of the residence was lawfully issued, given that both the Department of Environment and the Department of Forests – according to relevant publications – seem to disagree and consider that the relevant permit should also be examined by these Departments.
Also, the Audit Office must study and evaluate whether satisfactory conditions for the protection of the river have been set by the Water Department and the Town Planning Department. Is the distance of 5 meters, as it has been published, appropriate, given the exceptional natural beauty of the area and given that in other areas the Water Department imposes a protection zone of more than five meters?
It must also be checked why the illegal start of works was not detected in time by the competent authorities, e.g. District Administration, Department of Town Planning, Spatial Authority, despite the fact that there were warnings and publications.
Finally, it is equally important for the Audit Office to return to the issue of the impact on the environment, but also on public infrastructure, e.g. dam and irrigation system of Pera Pedi, from the works carried out in the area of P. Platres.
This issue was highlighted by the Audit Office itself in Special Report No. IP/01/2022. The fact that large volumes of waste materials and rubble, which are wrongly discharged into the river due to the construction works carried out on its bank, are led through the flow to the dam in Pera Pedi and it is estimated that ultimately affects the capacity of the small irrigation dam and the ability of the irrigation system to provide sufficient quantities for irrigation of crops in the Pera Pedi – Koilani area.
