Economy is bad everywhere. The summer fires in Greece have been devastating...>

[Dover]

Greek villagers despair, demand help after fires

...The blazes, which raged for 10 days and were the worst in memory, killed 65 people, destroyed homes and obliterated olive trees, vineyards, and half of the forests in the southern Peloponnese peninsula.

Politicians declared a state of emergency and promised millions of euros in aid, just weeks before a general election. But a year later, with the vote safely out of the way, villagers say almost nothing has been done.

Some people fear the blazes may have dealt a death-blow to hoteliers, olive-oil producers and farmers who saw 180,000 hectares (445,000 acres) of land on the Peloponnese turn black.

Many communities were already struggling to survive in one of the poorest regions in the euro zone. Some residents had long accused the government of neglecting rural areas, leaving young people to seek better lives in cities.

"We are completely forgotten by everyone. A year has gone by and I'm thinking of just picking up and leaving. I have no life here," said Aris Vassopoulos, 34, a restaurant owner who saw his business and home in the village of Artemida go up in flames.

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Greece is grappling with a slowing economy and a huge debt burden -- standing around 95 percent of gross domestic product. Growth has averaged 4.2 percent a year since it joined the euro zone in 2001, but economists expect it to slow to 3 percent this year.

Economists warn of serious long-term effects for the Peloponnese unless quick measures are taken to compensate people for fire damage: if agriculture is not revived, jobs will be lost and local businesses shut down. Nearly four out of five people work in tourism and agriculture.

"As a result of this trend, the local economy will be trapped in stagnation or will even shrink," said Nikos Magginas, an economist at Greek National Bank.


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With some of Greece's most treasured landscapes, the Peloponnese welcomes 1.5 million tourists every year and produces one-third of the country's main export, olive oil.

About 40 percent of the peninsula's olive groves were destroyed by the fires and compensation has yet to be paid for replanting. Environmentalists say destroyed deciduous forests will take at least 20 years to grow again and the fir forests will take around 100 years.

Greece's farmers had already seen their incomes shrink because of European Union agricultural reforms, increased competition from third countries and volatile weather...>


http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LP64402.htm