Apokoronas calls emergency council meeting to fight new 52.8 MW wind farm plan

Summary

The Crete Region's Environment Committee has launched a public consultation on a plan to build a 52.8 MW wind farm at Assi Gonia in Apokoronas, giving residents 30 days to file objections. Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis responded immediately, calling an emergency open council session for October 9, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. that any resident can attend. The municipality vows to scrutinise every page of the environmental study and use all available legal means to block the project.

Apokoronas fights back against new wind farm plan above Assi Gonia

A new battle is brewing over the mountains of Apokoronas. On October 7, 2026, the Environment Committee of the Crete Region formally opened a public consultation process on an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for a planned 52.8 MW wind farm at a site known as Assi Gonia, within the municipality of Apokoronas. The project is being driven by the company "Aiolika Parka Kritis Elika Thesi Myina Monoprosopi I.K.E."

The announcement triggered an immediate response from the municipality. Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis made the community's position unmistakably clear: "Some people have apparently still not understood that Apokoronas has said NO. Since they seem to insist on pretending not to hear, we will say it even louder."

Emergency council session open to all

Without waiting, Koukianakis called an extraordinary, open municipal council session for Friday, October 9, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. Any resident who wishes to attend is welcome. The council is expected to formally state the municipality's position and map out the next steps in the fight.

The mayor outlined a clear strategy: the municipality will study every page of the EIA documentation, scrutinise every detail, highlight every environmental, planning and social concern, and submit fully argued objections — all within the 30-day window opened by the public consultation period. Every available legal avenue will be explored.

A community that has fought before

This is not Apokoronas's first confrontation with large energy infrastructure. The municipality has already waged a sustained campaign against high-voltage electricity pylons planned along the Chania–Damasta corridor. Koukianakis drew a direct line between that struggle and this one, insisting that the municipality cannot be turned into an "energy colony."

"The mountains, the gorges, the protected areas, our natural heritage, and the right of our people to decide the future of their land are not negotiable," he said. "Apokoronas is our place, our life, our history, our home — and we will not surrender it."

He had a pointed message for anyone counting on the community losing energy over time or hoping the plan could be pushed through quietly: "That is a very big mistake. Apokoronas is united and will fight to the end."

Key facts at a glance

Location: Assi Gonia, Apokoronas municipality
Planned capacity: 52.8 MW wind farm
Objection deadline: 30 days from publication in the local press
Emergency council session: October 9, 2026, 2:00 p.m. — open to all residents
Municipality's plan: Full EIA review, formal objections, all legal remedies

The mayor's bottom line: "The mountains of Apokoronas will not be surrendered."

Official source

PRESS RELEASE – HAVE THEY STILL NOT UNDERSTOOD? THEN THEY WILL FIND US STANDING IN THEIR WAY.

October 8, 2026, 2:11 PM

New EIA for a 52.8 MW Wind Energy Production Station at Assi Gonia – Extraordinary Municipal Council session tomorrow, Friday, October 9, at 14:00

Mayor of Apokoronas, Charalampos Koukianakis: "It seems some people have still not understood that Apokoronas has said NO, and since it appears that some insist on pretending not to hear, we will say it even louder."

By means of a document from the Environment Committee of the Region of Crete, dated October 7, 2026, the commencement of the process of publication and public consultation of the Environmental Impact Study for a Wind Energy Production Station with a capacity of 52.8 MW, at the location "Assi Gonia", in the Municipality of Apokoronas, by the company "AIOLIKA PARKA KRITIS ELIKA THESI MYINA MONOPROSOPI I.K.E." is announced, and the document provides for a period of 30 days from publication in the local press for the submission of objections and opinions.

As stated by the Mayor of Apokoronas, Charalampos Koukianakis: "We are not waiting. Tomorrow, Friday, October 9, 2026, at 14:00, an EXTRAORDINARY OPEN MUNICIPAL COUNCIL SESSION OF APOKORONAS is being convened, which anyone who wishes may attend. We have already fought the battle over the Chania–Damasta Pylons and we have already stated that Apokoronas cannot be turned into an energy colony. The mountains, the gorges, the protected areas, our natural capital, and the right of our people to decide for their land are not up for negotiation. Let it therefore be absolutely clear: APOKORONAS IS NOT 'FREE SPACE' TO BE DIVIDED UP AS THEY SEE FIT. Apokoronas is our place, our life, our history, our home, and we will not surrender this land.

Continuing, Mayor Koukianakis stated that tomorrow the Municipal Council will take a clear position and will determine the next steps, and we will do what must be done: we will study every page of the EIA, we will check every element, we will highlight every environmental, planning and social parameter, we will submit documented objections, using every lawful institutional and judicial means to protect Apokoronas, and let no one harbour any illusions. Whoever thinks that time will tire out society, that we will forget, or that it will pass 'under the radar', is making a very big mistake. APOKORONAS IS UNITED AND WILL FIGHT TO THE END.

Because there is one red line that is non-negotiable: THE MOUNTAINS OF APOKORONAS WILL NOT BE SURRENDERED.