Photo: Shutterstock The residents of Kos are very angry. In light of the ongoing increase in the number of tourists to the island, in recent years there has been pressure on local infrastructure and concern about a decline in quality of life. About 1,600 residents have banded together and signed a petition calling for a suspension of building permits for new hotels, until a current study on the tourism carrying capacity of the island is completed.
The group calling itself "Sustainable Kos" is leading the initiative and recently submitted a petition to the regional parliament members and the Ministry of Environment in Athens.
According to the petition, since 2009, the number of beds in hotels on the island has increased by about 43%, from 40,240 to 57,463, with a significant increase in five-star hotels.
It is noted that in the past year, according to data from Kos airport, there was a 3.9% increase in the number of arrivals to the island by air. In recent years, the number of tourists each season on the island has ranged from 800,000 to 1 million, and before the COVID-19 pandemic, in the summer of 2019, this threshold was also crossed, and the number of tourists reached about 1.2 million.
The protest group emphasizes the need for a reevaluation of tourism development policy to ensure that the island can cope with the growing demand without harming the environment and the local community.
The petition states: "We seek immediate intervention from the parliament on the question - what does the government intend to do to suspend the granting of new building permits in Kos, until the study is completed". The protesters concluded the petition by saying, "Protecting our island and ensuring a sustainable tourism model is of critical importance for the present and future of Kos".
As we reported earlier, several islands in Greece are facing unbearable tourist overload. Last June, a cruise ship was prevented from docking in Santorini due to a tourist overload. Protesters from all over Greece have also mobilized in recent years to protest against the sunbeds that have "flooded" the beaches, which has led the Greek government to legislate on the matter.
