Government unveils draft law on burned regions

Greece’s Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change on 26 October unveiled a draft law, seeking to guarantee optimum protection against unauthorized construction and development in areas of east Attica prefecture ravaged by wildfires in August 2009. The purpose of the draft legislation is to abolish what the government calls forest-killing regulations and to create infrastructure (forestry maps-forest registry) aimed at protecting ecosystems and state land. The primary measures to be introduced by the proposed bill include a temporary suspension of all construction work, even in areas where building is allowed, and the establishment of a three-member committee on demolitions to eradicate the widespread phenomenon of unauthorized construction in burnt regions. The draft law also provides the inclusion of all wildfire-ravaged land in the land registry (cadastre) process if not registered yet, and suspends implementation of current regulations for differentiating land as defined as forest from that of a forested area. The draft law’s regulations refer to two time periods: the time until a burnt area is proclaimed destined for reforestation, followed by the period between declaring land destined for reforestation and the ratification of forest maps for the area in question. Specifically, construction will be suspended in areas where building is currently allowed but are within a region considered under reforestation. The suspension will last until maps of forestland have been finalized. Exempted from this ban are legally built structures and those with legitimate building licenses issued before the wildfires, following an inspection by the special committee. A special committee on demolitions will be set up to eradicate the phenomenon of unauthorized building in burnt regions, with technical support from the Hellenic Mapping and Cadastral Organization (OKXE). Moreover, land registry procedures will begin at once in the regions that have not been registered with OKXE yet and a forest map will be drawn up immediately. The draft law also provides for the suspension of section 3, paragraph 1, article 1, of Law No 3208/2003 that defines the criteria based on which an area is characterized as a forest or forest land.