Clash Over Uncleaned Areas on Mount Hymettus Amid Fire Season

A dispute has erupted over the state of Mount Hymettus in Greece, with residents expressing alarm over uncleaned areas as the fire season intensifies. The Mayor of Elliniko-Argyroupoli and former president of the Hymettus Protection and Development Association (SPAY), Yiannis Konstantatos, highlighted significant uncleaned expanses on the mountain.

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The municipality of Elliniko-Argyroupoli is a member of SPAY and pays its due amount for these works to be carried out.

According to an announcement, a civil protection team and volunteers from the Municipality of Elliniko-Argyroupoli visited neighborhoods bordering Hymettus on the Argyroupoli side. Many residents have contacted the municipality with justified concerns about the mountain's readiness for fire prevention. During resident briefings, it was clarified that SPAY holds the responsibility and authorization from the Forestry Department for cleaning Mount Hymettus.

Konstantatos stated that during his tenure as SPAY president from 2019 to 2024, cleaning operations began in early May and concluded across Hymettus before the peak fire season. He expressed disappointment with the current administration's delays, noting that the mountain's condition does not meet fire safety needs or the readiness residents have come to expect.

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Unfortunately, after the change of administration in SPAY, serious delays are observed, with the result that the mountain today presents an image that does not correspond either to the needs of fire protection or to the level of readiness that the residents of the area were accustomed to.

SPAY responded by asserting that cleaning operations are proceeding normally, aligned with their operational plan and prioritizing areas with the greatest fire risk. They stated that extensive cleaning interventions have been completed in the northern and eastern parts of Hymettus, including areas with critical infrastructure. SPAY also clarified that as an inter-municipal body representing 12 municipalities, it assists the state but is not solely responsible for cleaning the entire mountain, a fact known to all member municipalities.

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No abandonment or inaction exists. On the contrary, extensive cleaning interventions have already been completed with targeted prioritization in the most flammable, dense, and burdened parts of northern and eastern Hymettus, where critical infrastructure is also hosted!

SPAY further emphasized that its operations are driven by the essence of fire protection and not by communication tactics or geographical selectivity. Cleaning efforts have been carried out in areas such as Agia Paraskevi, Papagou-Cholargos, Zografou, Koropi, Kaisariani, Dafni-Ymittos, and are nearing completion in Vyronas, Argyroupoli, Ilioupoli, Markopoulo-Mesogaia, Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni, and Paiania.

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SPAY, as an inter-municipal body of 12 Member Municipalities, assists the State and is not the competent authority for the cleaning of all of Hymettus. It cannot do so, a fact that all its Member Municipalities know!