Building licenses suspended in Santorini’s caldera zone

A clause that imposes suspension on building in the wider zone of the caldera on the islands of Santorini and Therasia was included in draft legislation put out for public consultation by the Environment Ministry on Thursday. 

The suspension covers swimming pools and building extensions as well as brand-new construction.

At the same time, a two-year deadline is given to all tourism businesses operating in the caldera to carry out a structural adequacy study, while the local planning authority is mandated to check all building permits in the zone by the end of 2024.

“This year, after the landslide in April, meetings of the intergovernmental committee were held specifically for Santorini and, next, the issue of the stability of the slopes of the caldera was examined,” said the president of the Anti-Seismic Planning and Protection Organization (OASP), Efthymis Lekkas.