Costis Hatzidakis describes nine axes of gov't environmental plan

Energy and Environment Minister Costis Hatzidakis described the nine axes of the government's environmental policy at his speech late Wednesday at the Economist's 3rd Sustainability Summit for South East Europe and the Mediterranean.

"We do not consider the environment as an individual political sector but as the filter through which every state policy should pass and this primarily concerns the economy, as there can be no future without green growth so investments must come to terms with environmental protection," he said.

According to Hatzidakis, the government's plan focuses phasing out lignite and a higher penetration of renewable energy sources, so that the percentage share of green energy is at 35 pct in 2030 instead of the initial target of 31 pct.

Integrated management of waste, the islands' power interconnection, the electromobility, restricting use of disposable plastics, protection of biodiversity and protection of the forests are included in the government's environmental plan.