Press release · Municipality of Apokoronas

Apokoronas calls on all Chania municipalities to unite against White Mountains wind farm

October 13, 2026 Original source ↗ Verified source

Summary

The Apokoronas Municipal Council has voted unanimously to oppose a planned 52.8 MW wind farm near Asi Gonia and is now urging all municipalities in the Chania region to pass supporting resolutions by November 10, 2026. The project would see eight 185-metre turbines erected in the White Mountains, with kilometres of new and widened roads cutting through the Azilaka forest and the area around Lake Kournas. Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis has written to every mayor and council president in the region, asking them to formally back Apokoronas and join a coordinated front against the development.

Apokoronas rallies Chania municipalities to protect the White Mountains

A plan to build eight wind turbines in the mountains above Asi Gonia has prompted Apokoronas to launch one of the most ambitious inter-municipal campaigns the Chania region has seen in years. The Municipal Council voted unanimously in an emergency session to oppose the project — and Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis has now written to every mayor and council president in the Chania regional unit, asking them to do the same.

What is planned — and what it would mean on the ground

The proposed wind farm would have a total capacity of 52.8 MW, made up of eight turbines each generating 6.6 MW. Each turbine would stand 185 metres tall, with rotor blades spanning 155 metres in diameter. To build and service the site, approximately 6.5 kilometres of new roads would be cut through the mountain terrain, and a further 8.5 kilometres of existing tracks would be widened — with particularly heavy earthworks required at bends and turns.

Mayor Koukianakis argues these are not minor inconveniences. The combination of turbine construction and road works would permanently alter the mountain landscape, damage a fragile natural environment, and inflict changes that cannot be undone. The areas at stake — Asi Gonia, the Azilaka forest, the broader White Mountains, and the countryside around Lake Kournas — hold deep ecological, historical, and cultural significance for the entire region.

The mayor also stresses that the wind farm cannot be assessed in isolation. A high-voltage power line connecting Chania to Damasta is also planned for the same general area. Taken together, the cumulative impact of both projects needs thorough evaluation before any approvals are granted.

What Apokoronas is asking other municipalities to do

Koukianakis has sent formal letters to the mayors and council presidents of every municipality in the Chania regional unit. He is asking them to put the issue on their council agendas immediately and adopt formal resolutions by November 10, 2026. Specifically, he is requesting that each council:

State clearly its opposition to this particular wind farm in Asi Gonia
Call for the rejection of the project's environmental terms and the refusal of its environmental licence
Highlight the cumulative impacts, including the road works and the planned high-voltage line
Authorise their mayors to submit the resolutions collectively, forming a unified front with a joint memorandum and using every available administrative and legal avenue

A message that goes beyond one municipality

The underlying argument from Apokoronas is simple: the White Mountains belong to everyone in Crete, not just the residents of one municipality. "Tomorrow, our children will judge us by what we protected, not by what we promised," Mayor Koukianakis wrote. "Let us not stand by as spectators — let us unite our efforts before it is too late."

Key facts at a glance

Deadline for supporting council resolutions: November 10, 2026
Location: Asi Gonia, Azilaka forest, White Mountains, Lake Kournas area
Project scale: 8 turbines × 6.6 MW = 52.8 MW total capacity; turbine height 185 m; blade diameter 155 m
Infrastructure: ~6.5 km new roads + ~8.5 km widened existing roads

Official source

Source translation

Machine-translated from the official source document.

PRESS RELEASE

Apokoronas Municipal Council: "The White Mountains are not just Apokoronas's concern — We call on the Municipalities of Chania to form a joint protection front"

The Mayor of Apokoronas, Charalampos Koukianakis, acting on a relevant unanimous decision of the Apokoronas Municipal Council, has sent a letter to the Mayors and the Presidents of the Municipal Councils of the Chania Regional Unit, requesting the adoption of supporting resolutions by 10 November 2026. In a critical intervention for the protection of the White Mountains, Asi Gonia, the Azilaka forest, and the broader area of Lake Kournas, the Mayor of Apokoronas, Charalampos Koukianakis, acting pursuant to a relevant unanimous decision of the Apokoronas Municipal Council to that end, called on the Municipalities of the Chania Regional Unit to join forces against the planned wind power station of 52.8 MW capacity in Asi Gonia. Through his letter to the Mayors and the Presidents of the Municipal Councils, he requests that the matter be brought immediately before the Municipal Councils and that explicit supporting resolutions be adopted, by 10 November 2026, in favour of the Municipality of Apokoronas, so as to form a strong, joint, and coordinated front of local government in Chania. The project provides for the installation of eight wind turbines of 6.6 MW each, with a height of 185 metres and a blade diameter of 155 metres; for its implementation, according to the data cited in the letter, the opening of approximately 6.5 kilometres of new road and the widening of existing roads over a length of approximately 8.5 kilometres are foreseen, with particularly extensive earthworks at bends. These interventions, the Mayor emphasises, will cause serious alteration of the mountain terrain, strain on the natural environment, and irreversible impacts on a landscape of particular ecological, historical, and cultural value. At the same time, it is underlined that the project cannot be examined in isolation from the other energy infrastructure planned in the wider area, with particular reference to the high-voltage line Chania–Damasta. The overall and cumulative burden must be evaluated substantively before decisions are taken that may have long-term consequences. The Apokoronas Municipal Council, in an extraordinary session, unanimously expressed its opposition to the installation of wind turbines in Asi Gonia. Through this new initiative of the Municipal Council, the aim is for the position of Apokoronas to gain the support of the entire local government of Chania and to be transformed into a coordinated institutional intervention. Specifically, the Municipal Councils are requested to:

Express their clear opposition to the installation of the specific wind power station
Request the non-approval of the environmental terms and the rejection of the environmental licensing of the project
Highlight the cumulative impacts including the road works and the planned high-voltage line
Authorise, within the scope of their legal competences, the Mayors to submit the relevant resolutions so as to form a common front, with a unified memorandum and by making use of every lawful administrative and judicial means

The message of the Apokoronas Municipal Council is clear: the protection of the White Mountains cannot be the concern of a single municipality alone — it concerns the natural wealth, the historical memory, the identity, and the future of our place. Asi Gonia, the Azilaka forest, the White Mountains, and the wider area of Lake Kournas are a living place that connects generations of people and a heritage that we have a duty to pass on intact to our children. What is at stake transcends the administrative boundaries of our municipality — it is a matter for all of us. "Tomorrow, our children will judge us by what we protected, not by what we promised. Let us not remain spectators — let us unite our forces before it is too late."