After long manifestations of local authorities and the sponsoring of the Hellenic Post Bank, “Poseidon” will, after 3 years of inactivity, re-start his activities and even more. The small catamaran for many years was sailing along the coast of the Thermaic Golf and collecting trashes from the water.

Salonika’s local municipality, while searching for long term solutions to answer to the new directive (2000/60) according to which waters of the European Union must be at a “good ecological quality” until 2015, decided to do what it takes to ensure “Poseidon” is reactivated. Today, subventions from the Government are difficult to obtain, because of the Financial Crisis Greece is facing, for this reason external funding was the only solution. The Hellenic Post Bank investing around 50.000 Euros, allowed the Municipality to renovate the boat and put it on tracks again. “Poseidon” is today not only collecting trashes from the water but also participates in gathering data about the level of pollution of the waters ensuring the input for better environmental management of the Golf’s waters.

Greece has a very large fleet and could develop more such initiatives to ensure the effective water surveillance and cleaning. The scope of the problem must be larger than restraint to the Thermaic Golf. The captain of “Poseidon”, Kleanthis Savidis admits that: “The worse days are when we have southern winds, because the trashes accumulate at the Old Beach. In the contrary, northern winds push them out of the coastal area”. For them the worse period during the year is the summer time from March until August, where they cannot collect everything since there are so many trashes.

Source:

Article “Ο «Ποσειδώνας» του Θερμαϊκού” 08/04/2012, Zougla.gr, http://www.zougla.gr/perivallon/article/o-posidonas–tou-8ermaikou

Article “Ο Ποσειδώνας στον Θερμαϊκό”, 28/11/2011, http://terrasos.pblogs.gr/2011/11/o-poseidwnas-ston-therma-ko.html

Article “ΦΩΤΟ: Ο χάρτης στον Θερμαϊκό και ο… Ποσειδών!”, by Georges Kasapidis, http://www.thestival.gr/xalllara/item/31791-foto3a-o-xartis-ston-thermaiko-kai-o-poseidzrhhrdkwoownvnxzfjjewiiwcebfzrhhrdkwoownvnxzfjjewiiwn21

Article “Θεσσαλονίκη | Ο «Ποσειδώνας» θα βοηθήσει τον Θερμαϊκό”, 20/11/2011, http://www.kala-nea.gr/archives/24748

Article “Επανέρχεται ο “Ποσειδώνας” στο Θερμαϊκό που πνίγεται και πάλι στα σκουπίδια”, 12/12/2011, http://www.seleo.gr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=45017:–qq——–&catid=94:2011-10-25-14-43-11&Itemid=134