First tests on farmland soil encouraging after Thessaly floods

The first batch of tests carried out to gauge the quality of the soil on farms in Thessaly, central Greece, following last month’s destructive floods, have been encouraging, the Rural Development Ministry said on Friday.

According to the findings from 281 of the 350 locations that will be tested, the “majority” of fields contain sediment that will not prevent the cultivation of crops once it is mixed in with the soil.

In fields where the sediment deposits are too big to be assimilated, measures will be taken to make the soil fertile again.

Tests were also conducted to ascertain how the quality of fishing off the eastern coast of central Greece was affected by the floods, as sediment can affect nutrients in the water.

The findings there are not conclusive yet, the ministry said, adding that support measures will be initiated for the more than 460 fishermen affected.