The mission seems clear now. Through their policy puppets in office, investors in Crete intend to make the island into a barren rock for producing energy and endless all-inclusive playgrounds. Their method and their planning ends up destroying one of Greece’s greatest treasures. How so, you ask? As it turns out, huge resorts with half a dozen swimming pools and marinas use less water than traditional Cretan agriculture, even apiculture (beekeeping). As climate change, overtourism, and drought desertify Crete Island, tradition and culture have been chosen for sacrifice.
Take Cretan bees as a case in point. We already know that roughly 80% of the water nourishing the island is used for agricultural purposes. Only some agricultural products are not dependent (but perhaps should be) on irrigation that saps the island’s precious water resources. We are not told that draught in remote places like Palaikastro, Zakros, and Xerokampos in Lassithi Prefecture was once home to more than 10,000 bee hives. Because of climate change and dryer seasons, that number has been reduced to 200 or less. Of particular interest is the wild thyme that grows in the region. One of Crete’s most precious products is made by the all-important bees from this wild flowering herb.
Abandoning the Legend, a Struggle for Survival
Cretan mythology tells the story of the origins of honey, which is related to the legend of the nymph Melissa, daughter of the Minoan King Melisseus (bee man). According to this myth, Melissa taught humans about honey and its curative and nutritious qualities. Some fear that this wild thyme may not survive the combined effects of climate change and overengineered human endeavors. A case in point is the wild thyme tradition of Malta island, where the wild shrub is rapidly disappearing. This is a disaster, given that it became illegal to pick the herb on Malta back in the 1930s. The thyme, which is usually resistant to drought, is dying.
Returning to the problem in Crete, the economic impact on beekeepers in Lassithi has been severe. Calls for government support have met with little or no attention, and many fear the region’s prized honey production may be at risk of extinction. Meanwhile, a solution seems to be taking shape in the halls of power. Massive luxury resort projects like Elounda Hills and others get the green light, while horror stories from Crete’s pristine urban landscapes now crowd some news and Facebook uprising pages. Elounda Hills, the 750 million euro yacht and beach club being wedged into an already jam-packed area North of Agios Nikolaos, represents one facet of a huge problem. The other dagger spike or developmental trend plans for vast wind and photovoltaic farms across Crete’s natural landscape warn us that our best interests are being ignored. The marketing mojo being used to smooth over the Elounda Hills mess goes something like this:
Elounda Hills offers luxury with sustainability, sustainability with ecological character.
Right. With all this significant investment focused on developments that are distinctly NOT traditional Cretan, it’s no stretch of the imagination to envision some actuary doing probability studies to show the island would be better off without residents, without villages. Visualising Crete as a tourism and energy machine for privateers is no conspiracy theory. It’s been going on for some time. Nothing on this island takes priority over paving new paths and roads or building monuments to profitability. Nothing.
Bulldozing Heritage
I won’t delve into the project of transforming the old Nazi airfield in Kastelli into Crete’s spanking new tourist cattle gate. Forget what this endeavor will ruin and consider places like Apokoronas, where locals cannot even get water and where Crete’s governor prioritises a tourist path into the mountains over the necessities of locals. You read that correctly. I wrote about it some weeks back. Standing back and looking at the spectrum of investor/governmental action versus the plight of groups like the beekeepers, a clearer picture draws nearer to complete focus.
Giant wind farms, vast photovoltaic valleys, coasts lined like Miami Beach with hotels, and farmers, shepherds, beekeepers, villagers, and even retail shops in the most scenic city centers all shut down – this is the horrific image I see for Crete. In an article (read it and weep) from August of this year, the president of the Federation of Greek Beekeepers’ Associations told of the seriousness of the situation:
In Crete, which is the motherland of thyme honey, we didn’t harvest at all.
This report could become a research project, expose, or book. Looking at the Google results for searches like “wild thyme honey crete,” guess what appears instead of the state of the bees or the warnings of cheap imported honey replacing authentic Cretan thyme honey? “Crete’s iconic Blue Palace opens a new chapter.” This article has less than 300 words and a blurry photo of the Cretan Sea. So why does it take precedence over essential stories? Buying keywords and phrases. Someone was busy stuffing Blue Palace into the search engine results pages. Mind you, this search showed Blue Palace in Google News without a mention of thyme or honey.
Crete’s Silent Struggle: Beekeeping Amidst Neglect
Crete Island is a microcosm of what is happening in our world. Here, as is the case in most countries, politicians and especially the money elites are immune to criticism. The lack of action by the public and our overall sense of hopelessness or carelessness have empowered the world’s pirates. They operate with immunity, especially where subjects like Cretan beekeeping are concerned. A Medium piece I wrote some time ago encapsulates much of this situation. “Crete Supports the Tango, Pole Dancing, and Anything But the Island’s Heritage” is scathing, but no politician’s assistant called my office to inquire.
There are just too many horror stories to mention. Still, the ghastly decision to approve British company Minoan Group’s plans for an expansive resort complex in Crete’s Far East is a prime example of politicians running afoul of what the public wishes. Thank the mighty Zeus for not allowing Minoan Group to lure in enough investors yet. A golf resort in the same area where bees are disappearing would indeed be a travesty.
Next, we will discuss how the bureaucracy transformed one of Crete’s most visible monuments into Greece’s biggest backyard birdbath.
