Forests and Forest Expanses in the Orthodox Academy of Crete

The works of the scientific one-day conference (Saturday 13 June 2015), which was held at the Orthodox Academy of Crete, in cooperation with the Bar Association of Chania and the Technical University of Crete, were successfully concluded. The theme of the one-day Conference was ‘Forests and Forest Expanses: Issues of Protection, Ownership and the Spatial Integration of Works of RES’, aiming at the spherical analysis based on the Constitution and the Laws, promoting the significance of respect towards the natural environment and human beings.

The General Director of the OAC, welcoming the participants, noted that ‘there is a commonly shared sensation that Crete, like our whole country, is at a historical phase of catalytic rearrangements and challenges, which do not only affect the surroundings of human beings, but they also affect their inner self. It is probably a part and a consequence of other distortions which have preceded. We need to examine in particular what comes first and what is more directly threatened: the earth or the spirit of Crete?’ He also presented a theological approach to the theme of the conference, promoting the thinking of the Church fathers, who made frequent references to what people produce through their own effort and to what was given by God to humanity to be commonly used.

For his part, Ioannis Daskalakis, President of the Bar Association of Chania, expressed his concern about the problem of resolving many court cases, which are pending due to the complexity of laws, which is the reason why the Bar Association jointly organized this one-day conference along with the OAC and the Technical University, concerned about the multiple problems arising from the implementation of forest laws.

The first speaker, Dr. Eupraxia-Aithra Maria (Associate Professor of Environmental Law - Lawyer, Faculty of Environmental Engineering of the Technical University of Crete) presented the special constitutional framework for the protection of forests and forest expanses, whether public or private, i.e. regardless of their ownership status. She underlined the core of the provisions of increased strength governing their protection, which involves the initial prohibition of a change in their designation, with the exception of cases of special reasons of public interest, which are examined at penalty of cancellation. She then referred to the specialization of the special constitutional framework in the crucial field of interventions permitted, and in particular, in the works of electricity production from RES within the forest environment, also presenting the relevant case-law. Concluding, she expressed some critical thoughts and remarks on the total of forest legislation, with emphasis on the complex, fragmented and case-specific nature of the provisions of common legislation.

For his part, Marios Haidarlis (Assistant Professor of Urban Planning, Spatial Planning Law and Environmental Law - Lawyer, Department of Planning and Regional Development of the University of Thessaly) analytically presented the whole spatial planning legislation, the relevant case-law and the framework governing the licensing of wind farms in Crete, which arises from them. He particularly referred to the decisions adopted by the Council of State which ruled that the special planning framework for RES is legal, as well as to the decisions legalizing the inclusion of large investment proposals for RES works into the law on strategic investments, which referred the examination of the crucial spatial planning and environmental issues to the issuance of their future licenses. Mr. Haidarlis stressed that the role of the national/special framework on RES is still dominant, despite the evident conflict both between the national/special framework on RES and the regional spatial planing framework for Crete and between the special framework and the local spatial plans under preparation (former general urban plan/plan for the spatial and residential organization of open cities). He also analyzed the difficulties arising from the resolution of the specific conflicts, which must be carried out by the legislator at a central level. For this reason, the mechanism of environmental licensing and the studies carried out in this framework is always highly valuable.

Maria Melissari, (Head of the Department of Property Rights of the Directorate for the Protection of Forests and Agroenvironment of the Ministry of Reconstruction of Production, Environment and Energy) analyzed the basic issues of forest ownership. These are the presumption of state ownership of forests and forest grasslands, the ways in which private forest ownership is recognised (administratively and judicially), occupied forests, and the conditions and restrictions provided for the transfer of private forests and forest expanses.

Then, Christina Peraki (Lawyer of Chania, with a master’s degree in civil law) presented the probative process before courts, in the case of property lawsuits filed by private citizens against the State on forest expanses, with acquisitive prescription as an ownership title, analyzing the applicable provisions of the Cretan civil code with references to recent case-law.

The last speaker was Elias Kyriakopoulos (Head of the Department of Property Rights and Legal Cases of the Directorate of Immovable Property Management of the Ministry of Reconstruction of Production, Environment and Energy), who presented the existing regulations and the relevant draft law on grazing lands, and explained the regulations on grazing management plans and the allocation of rights to stock-breeders, as it was regulated by decision No 873/55993/20.5.15 (Government Gazette 942/Β/ 2015) of the Minister and Deputy Minister of Reconstruction of Production,
Environment and Energy. Finally, he referred to the regulations on occupied properties of Law 4061/2012, as still in force (failure to claim ownership rights and purchase of properties occupied).

A crucial intervention was made by the Director of the Forest Directorate of Chania, Polymnia Sklavaki, who stressed that the legal analysis of the issue of forests and forest expanses is absolutely vital and it is required that initiatives be adopted and further actions be taken so that the vital issue of forest management will become more clear both for the citizens, as well as for the agencies themselves.

The President of the stock-breeders of Chania, Manousos Stavrianoudakis expressed before the speakers and the audience his concerns about the grazing spaces in the Chania Prefecture, stating that the State must take measures for the simplification of the processes, so that it will not be necessary for each stock-breeder to implement expensive and bureaucratic processes in order to graze his animals.

Finally, the President of the Bar Association, Ioannis Papadakis congratulated the co-organizers, as a discussion was held that was absolutely constructive not only for the legal world of Crete, but also for all the citizens. He committed himself to making the conclusions of the conference widely known, marking the start for future analyses of the issue, stating that he would establish a committee at the Bar Association in order to further process the conclusions of the conference. It is absolutely necessary, he said, that the discussion on the forest issue continues, so that the agencies and the citizens will know what is in force with regard to forests and ownership, avoiding pointless and time-consuming controversies.

The conference was attended by current and former mayors, vice-mayors, municipal councilors, the President of the First Instance Court Judges of Chania, numerous lawyers, foresters, and citizens interested in the issue, from Chania as well as the rest of Crete.