Response of the Mayor of Kythera to the criticism of the major opposition party «Man first»:
In a recent Board of the major minority, it is attempted once again to downgrade the projects of our Municipality, projects that with much effort and hard work of elected officials and employees, have been financed for our island, solving serious development issues of decades. In the target of the major minority, this time, the flagship project of the Sewerage of the South Department, recently included in the Recovery Fund with a budget of more than 28.000.000 €, the largest in scope and budget project in the history of our Municipality.
On the questions raised, we answer in detail, clearly and unambiguously, although all these questions have been answered again both during the press conference and by the Head of Technical Services Mr. Kostas Stathis, at the last Board.
- Is it right to turn Kapsali, one of the most touristic spots on the island, into the culvert of the southern part? And it is no excuse that there is already a biological station there. It should be designed and a better location should be chosen elsewhere on the island, away from the eyes of tourists.ANSWER. No new zoning is required when there is already an existing WWTP in operation, with approved environmental conditions. Not a single tourist has ever complained about the Kapsali WWTP, which does NOT bother anyone except Mr. Magoulas! The WWTP is located far from the settlement. Besides, its use is foreseen in the Wastewater Management Master Plan, which our Municipality has (perhaps the only one in Greece that has such a study). The talk of a «drain in the southern part» is a joke (if not an irrelevance) as the WWTP in Kapsali will be upgraded to Grade C and the water will be used for irrigation.
The problems that exist every summer in Kapsali with the «blockage» of the drains and the «flooding» of the sewage on the beach and the adjacent houses are well known. Who can guarantee that after the sewer is overloaded with sewage from the entire southern section this will not multiply? Who guarantees that similar problems will not arise in other parts of the island?;
RESPONSE: The «known» problems, which are always dealt with IMMEDIATELY by the Municipal Authority, are created due to the absence of grease traps from some shops in the area, which is a MUST in all CIPs connected to the sewerage system. The project has a complete and fully licensed design, which has been judged by the relevant authorities who have the relevant knowledge (Mr. Magoulas is an Architect and not a Chemical Engineer) and have judged it to be correct and fully feasible. In addition, our Municipal Authority has taken care to hire a permanent Chemical Engineer and a permanent Mechanical Engineer, whose scientific knowledge, combined with our worthy private partners, guarantee the absolutely correct operation of the plant.The outlet of the biological treatment plant in Kapsali is in the sea, behind Grassa Ponta. It is well known to all the «soapy water» that floats, especially in the summer months. If this «soap suds», which will be multiplied by the abundance of sewage, were to enter the Bay of Kapsali with a syringe, has anyone considered the terrible impact it would have on the island's tourist product? And we don't accept the claim that now this is happening because the biological plant is not working well (it has been happening for the last 15 years) - the plant will be upgraded and the soapy water will disappear. No one is guaranteeing a similar situation of dysfunction in the future.
RESPONSE: As far as we are concerned what Mr.Magoulas (who we note again is NOT a Chemical Engineer, nor - obviously - has read the relevant study) accepts and does not accept. Upgrading the WWTP to Grade C converts the residue into clean water suitable for irrigation. No soapsuds, no nothing.Are there any return benefits for the settlement, the residents and the professionals of Capsalios?;
RESPONSE: Mr.Magoulas - not being able to believe that our Municipal Authority (against all the Cassandra's who wished and claimed the opposite) succeeded in financing such a great project - is trying to convince the residents of Kapsali that with the upgrade of the WWTP, Kapsali will suffer. Extreme lying, extreme misleading for the sole purpose of temporary political gain. The residents and professionals of Kapsali will benefit from the upgrade of the WWTP, as there will be no more damage, no more «spills» and of course NO pollution whatsoever. Will it be claimed in a short time that the desalination that will be put into Kapsali will also be «harmful» for the citizens of the area? So much political desperation now?;For nine years of the administration of Harhalakis STILL has not been connected to the biological of Kapsalios the western part of the settlement of Chora. Will the whole southern part of the island be connected within a year?;
RESPONSE: If Mr. Magoulas had a basic knowledge of local government, he would understand that for each project there is a specific time and manner of maturation, funding and execution. In the 9 years of our administration we have already done TOO many projects in all areas (too long to mention) and now the conditions are maturing for the sewer. After all, the entire western part of the Country is included in the funded project.Is it logical that settlements of the same community of Horas, such as Pourko, Spilia and Kalamos with its abundance of tourist accommodation, are not connected to the network under construction?;
RESPONSE: Mr. Magoulas, by asking this question, acknowledges the importance of the project and by contradicting what he claims above, he is in fact contradicting himself. Finally, does he like the work or not? Is it dangerous for the Capsule or not? If it is (as he claims in questions 1,2,3 and 4), then WHY is he calling for even more settlements to be connected to a «dangerous» network? Complete confusion. Kalamos is included in the project TOTAL as a settlement (internal network).Is it more economical to «dig up» the entire southern part of the island to get the pipeline through, instead of designing sewerage networks and implementing smaller biological plants in more ideal locations in each community in the southern part?;
RESPONSE: The confusion continues unabated. Of course it is more economical to connect the entire southern section to the Capsule WWTP than to design 10 or 20 «smaller biosolids» from the beginning. And a small child understands this. The Kapsali WWTP is already licensed. Does Mr Magoulas understand what it means to design from scratch and, above all, to license from scratch (18 authorisations and permits) new WWTPs in 5, 10 or 20 places on the island? Example: will the archaeological authorities ever give their approval for a water treatment plant at Mylopotamos, which is a strictly protected settlement? Funny questions, full of confusion.Is it more economical for the transport of wastewater, through this network, to build 9 power plants, the cost of each of them ranging from 220-550 thousand (as much as the cost of a ship's engine) with all the problems of operation and maintenance, instead of building more biological plants in the villages of Kythera?;
ANSWER: The answer to question 7 applies. The 9 pumping stations provided for in the study are necessary for the proper functioning of the network. Their costing, as well as that of the whole project, has been based on the state tariffs (ATOE prices) on which (at the tender stage) a (hopefully significant) discount will be given. The accusations of alleged «overcharging» are a joke and show a frightening lack of knowledge of the way in which government projects are drawn up and invoiced. Really Mr. Mowla, is it more economical for the City to maintain 20 WWTPs than to maintain one, which it is currently maintaining anyway?;With the water shortage we are facing, is it more logical to «throw» the end product (water) of the organic plant into the sea, than to use it to irrigate crops? Or does it make sense to take the tankers to the Capsule to load it?;
ANSWER: the final product of the treatment (water) will NOT be dumped into the sea. It will be made available to citizens for irrigation through a network that will be constructed so that the Capsule will not be burdened by private tanks. Don't worry Mr. Mowlaas, we have provided for everything. Even if something has not been provided for, the Recapitulative Tables are there to provide for it. That's how it is with public works.Is it more economical to transfer the wastewater from the Lower Chora of Mylopotamos to Kapsali instead of providing for a local biological plant in Mylopotamos?;
RESPONSE: The jokes continue. We responded to this issue during the 2019 election. In Mylopotamos, a new WWTP can NOT be licensed from the outset, in principle, due to the protected character of the settlement and the strict conditions of the Ministry of Culture. The streams are not demarcated and therefore can NOT be the recipient of the residue. And much more. In 2019 we proved that the only solution for Mylopotamos is to connect to the Chora WWTP, the documentation here: https://kainourgiamera.gr/gia-toys-viologikoys-katharismoys/Is it more economical to make the wastewater reception manhole from tanks at the depot in Dokana and then the wastewater to be transported by 9 engine houses to Capsule, than to build a biological station on site at the depot?;
RESPONSE: Frankly, we are surprised at these kinds of questions. Is Mr. Magoulas proposing that we build a new WWTP at the Waste House? To take the wastewater from which settlements? Let him clarify and we will answer.Is it more economical to transport the final product (water) from the Capsule or from a central biological plant to the depot in Dokana?;
RESPONSE: The question is not clear. It is a question of confusion. The irrigation water arises in the final treatment phase, i.e. in the WWTP. So is Mr. Magoulas proposing that we build a new WWTP at the Axe House? To take the waste water from which settlements? Let him clarify and we will answer.Has there been an economic and technical study on the operating costs of this network for the Municipality of Kythera? Can the Municipality of Kythera «afford» this cost? What steps have been taken to enable it to cope with this?;
ANSWER: no such study of any kind is required. There is no need for any such requirement. This project will generate revenue for the City through sewer bills from approximately 450 new connections provided in the study. These projects are revenue generating projects like the water projects. The City collects the sewer fees and maintains them. In addition, the project will be built with the latest technology in terms of the networks, pumping stations and telemetry that is planned, precisely to have reduced maintenance costs.Has an economic study been done on the extra charge to citizens for the cost of operating this project? Is there a provision for the connection costs and the fixed fee?;
ANSWER: The answer to question 13 applies. In addition, the Technical Description of the project includes BOTH the 450 utility connections. The fixed sewer fee is provided for in the Ordinance under which the residents of Country and Capsule pay this fee. Is Mr. Mowglais not aware of this?;
Finally, we cannot ignore Mr.Magoulas« view that »There will ALWAYS be money for the right ideas". The State, Mr. Magoulas, does NOT fund ideas, theories, idea-expositions, pomposity and gossip. It funds mature, sound and fully licensed studies. And especially for the HUGE South Department Sewerage project, the Ministry of Environment who funded it (infinitely more competent than Mr. Mugoulas of course), looked at all the facts and especially the alignment of our proposal with the National Operational Plan for Urban Wastewater Management of Settlements, which was updated in 2020 to be fully in line with EEC Directive 91/271. If our proposal was even remotely contrary to the National and Regional Plan, it would NOT have been funded.
There was an objective evaluation that lasted months, the budgets and invoices were checked (if the Ministry of Environment found them “overpriced”, the project would NOT have been included!), the technical specifications, every detail and proposal of the study was scrutinized and a positive evaluation was made, which weighed in favour of the inclusion of the project in the Recovery Fund.
We did a proper and complete study, we licensed it with a lot of effort and we managed to bring to our Municipality the unprecedented amount of 28.000.000€ to solve a huge environmental and social problem in a large part of our island. At a time when islands that are «leading players» in tourism have not yet managed to solve their solid and liquid waste management problems, Kythera proves that with proper planning and knowledge, they are way ahead.
Calling every major project of the Municipal Authority useless has now tired the citizens, who on October 8 will give a definitive answer to such negative attitudes.
As far as - in particular - the case of Mr.Magoulas, who for almost 4 years sees everything black and unclear, there is only one thing we can wish for: the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, who is celebrating today...
Help us!»
