Summary

The municipality of Apokoronas has submitted a funding application for €250,000 to build five metal rainwater collection tanks at the foot of the White Mountains, to be used as water supply points for firefighting crews and aircraft. The proposal was presented at a regional fire-season preparedness conference on April 27, 2026, attended by Greece's Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection. The municipality is also calling for legal reforms to allow local councils to directly fund volunteer civil protection groups and for increased state grants to municipalities for fire prevention.

Apokoronas seeks €250,000 for White Mountains firefighting water tanks

The municipality of Apokoronas has submitted a €250,000 funding application to build five metal rainwater collection tanks at the foot of the White Mountains (Lefka Ori). The proposal was presented on April 27, 2026, at a regional conference preparing for the 2026 fire season in Crete, which was attended by Greece's Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Evangelos Tournas.

What the project involves

The five tanks would collect rainwater and serve as fixed water supply points for both ground-based firefighting vehicles and aerial assets such as water-bombing aircraft and helicopters. According to the municipality, positioning strategic water sources in the area would reduce response times and improve the effectiveness of firefighting operations in difficult, high-risk terrain — the kind of rugged mountain landscape that is hard to reach quickly during a fire emergency.

The project is also described as a climate adaptation measure, making productive use of rainwater and contributing to sustainable natural resource management.

Broader demands

Alongside the funding application, the municipality has called for reform of the legal framework governing volunteer civil protection groups. Specifically, it is asking that local councils be legally permitted to provide direct financial support to these groups — covering fuel, equipment and operational costs. The municipality is also calling for a general increase in state grants to local councils for fire prevention, arguing that without adequate resources, prevention efforts remain aspirational rather than operational.

Context

The White Mountains are one of Crete's largest and most ecologically significant mountain ranges, and Apokoronas sits along their northern foothills. As climate change drives longer and more intense fire seasons across the Mediterranean, municipalities in areas like this face growing pressure to invest in infrastructure before fires start rather than responding after the fact. Whether and when the funding application will be approved has not yet been announced.

Press Release – Apokoronas: A Work of Safety and Responsibility for the White Mountains and Crete

April 27, 2026, 7:30 AM

At today's meeting on the preparation of the Anti-Fire Period 2026 in the Region of Crete, in the presence of the Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Mr. Evangelos Tournas, the Municipality of Apokoronas submitted a funding proposal of 250,000 euros for the construction of five (5) metal rainwater tanks (ombriodexamenes) at the foothills of the White Mountains.

The Municipality of Apokoronas was represented by the Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis, the President of the Municipal Council Georgios Mousorakis, and the Deputy Mayor Manos Kastrinakis, conveying clearly the need for immediate strengthening of fire protection and the overall fortification of the area.

This is a project of substance and immediate priority, which decisively strengthens the fire protection of our area and shields one of the most important natural lungs of Crete.

The rainwater tanks will function as strategic water extraction points for ground and aerial firefighting means, reducing response time and increasing the effectiveness of intervention in inaccessible high-risk areas. At the same time, they constitute a work of environmental adaptation to the climate crisis, with utilisation of rainwater and strengthening of the sustainable management of natural resources.

The White Mountains are natural wealth, they are our history, our identity. Their protection is not a local matter — it is a national mission.

The Municipality of Apokoronas chooses prevention and not disaster management. We request tangible support from the State for a project that can prove decisive for the safety of our area.

At the same time, a substantial strengthening of the Fire Services and voluntary civil protection groups is necessary, who every year fight on the front line. An immediate revision of the institutional framework governing them is required, so that municipalities are given the ability to support their work tangibly, through grants for fuel, equipment and operational needs. At the same time, an increase in state grants to municipalities for fire protection is imperative, so that prevention does not remain a wish, but becomes action with adequate resources and genuine operational readiness.

The protection of our area cannot wait. Faced with the climate crisis and the constantly increasing risk of fires, we are obliged to invest in prevention, readiness and responsibility. Apokoronas demands with a plan, seriousness and determination what it needs to remain safe and resilient.