Greek Village Celebrates Mining Victory

greek village celebrates mining victory

landmark court decision is a strong precedent

maria kadoglou , hellenic mining watch

Eastern Halkidiki is a Greek coastal area of spectacular beauty with a long history of mining exploitation. In March 2002, the inhabitants of a small village there gained a decisive victory against the TVX mining corporation, in Greece's longest and fiercest struggle for environmental and cultural protection.

stifling dissent
Greece's first and highest-profile gold mining project at the village of Olympias was ill-conceived from the start. A mere 1.5 km from the sea, the TVX corporation's cyanide-leaching gold processing plant was to be built over the ruins of the recently-discovered Hellenistic city of Stagira, home to Aristotle.

The tailings dam for disposal of 24 million tons of toxic waste would be constructed about three kilometres uphill from the plant, in a forest of unmatched beauty and protected under the EU's conservation program NATURA 2000.

The government and TVX ran a propaganda war against the villagers, presenting them as uneducated, anti-development fanatics. With no other recourse, the villagers resorted to powerful protests and road blockades. Riot police were sent in repeatedly and, at the end of the 20th century in the heart of Europe, a tiny village of 650 people was placed under martial law.

Confrontation with the police was often violent, and the people of Olympias were repeatedly dragged to court. A staggering 10 percent of villagers were sentenced to prison for exercising their constitutional rights.

where tvx is king
To facilitate mining, Greek governments have done everything in their power to prevent alternative development in eastern Halkidiki. The remainder of the Halkidiki region, with its long stretches of magnificent beaches, has become northern Greece's premier tourist destination. But almost two thirds of eastern Halkidiki's surface is covered with mining concessions belonging to TVX, and other economic activity is prohibited. Villages like Olympias, Stratoniki, Stagira and Stratoni that lie within mining areas cannot develop economically or undergo residential expansion. TVX is virtually the only employer in the area, and decline in the mining sector means unemployment is high and rising. Despite its exceptional beauty and natural wealth, eastern Halkidiki remains the poorest part of the region.

breaking the chain of dependence
After a 15-year struggle, the people of Olympias became the region's first village to break the long-standing historic oppression of mining interests. The landmark 1 March 2002 ruling by the Greek Council of State, the country's constitutional court, cancelled TVX's permits for the Olympias gold project. The ruling was based on the principle of sustainable development, the precautionary principle and the constitutional demand for environmental protection. The court ruled that the project's risks far outweighed any economic benefits. A careful reading indicates the ruling actually prohibits all large-scale mining projects.

legal pioneer for sustainability
The Council of State has gained worldwide recognition as a legal pioneer for translating the general principles of sustainable development from the Rio Declaration and EU's Amsterdam Treaty into judgments on a wide spectrum of problems. The EU acknowledges that the court's decisions have great theoretical and practical value, and will deeply influence EU public policies.

protestors terrorized
Recently, another traditional mining village in eastern Halkidiki, Stratoniki, adopted the same approach as Olympias. In their efforts to stop TVX from mining beneath their village, the people of Stratoniki are confronted daily by riot police. But they have taken the movement one step further, aiming to rid the area of all mining activity. Inhabitants are trying to establish a development model based on forestry, small-scale agriculture and eco-tourism.

Tension remains high, however, with TVX facing a final shut-down of its existing operations. Five hundred mine workers threatened with unemployment have been led by TVX to believe that mine opponents are the enemy. In December 2001, a mob of mine workers led by company officials broke into the local town hall, terrorized the mayor and municipal councillors and attempted to kill anti-mining community leaders.

challenges ahead
As for the pro-mining national government, it has already stated that it intends to bypass the Council of State ruling. Greece is under heavy pressure to exploit its mineral resources, and a number of international mining companies (including Rio Tinto and Normandy/Newmont) are pursuing gold projects. This landmark decision is putting the country on the right track, and will undoubtedly set a strong precedent for similar future cases.