A recent on-site inspection by the “Save the Beaches of Naxos” movement has brought to light disturbing environmental violations on Plaka beach, one of the island’s most cherished natural areas – and part of the EU's protected Natura 2000 network.

The findings paint a grim picture of unchecked degradation: illegal roadworks, bulldozers operating without registration plates, and unauthorised constructions sprawling across fragile sand dunes. “The evidence confirms, once again, the serious and ongoing environmental damage being inflicted on this protected zone,” the movement said in a statement.

According to the group’s report, the inspection uncovered:

  1. Pollution linked to makeshift flood defences: Plastic sandbags dumped on the shoreline and plots raised using unidentified – potentially contaminated – materials.
  2. Widening of an illegal road: Bulldozers have flattened dunes and laid down clay and gravel. One particularly large bulldozer was found abandoned at the site – without any licence plates.
  3. Erosion caused by permanent structures: The presence of cement walls, buildings, and concrete poured directly onto the sand and dunes has worsened coastal erosion. Continuous road expansions are stripping away dune material, leaving the landscape scarred.
  4. Ongoing encroachmenat: A tangle of platforms, paths and makeshift roads now criss-cross the dunes, causing further irreversible damage.
  5. A private helipad: In what may be the most audacious violation yet, a helicopter landing area has been created by a private individual – right in the heart of the Natura 2000 protected zone.

The “Save Naxos Beaches” movement is once again calling on local authorities to act – urgently and decisively. Their demands: enforce environmental laws, ensure transparency, and protect the area from further destruction.

“Now is the time to stop this,” the group warns. “If we wait any longer, it may already be too late.”

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