Nice article, but unfortunately there are no rivers in Halkidiki. Has any one of you ever seen a river in the area of Halkidiki? Cause I haven't seen "yet".

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Nikos
Forum Admin
nikos at halkidiki.com

Excuse me, but now I think this debate is taking an odd form...

Of course there are rivers in Halkidiki. This is basic geography of the area.

Some of the most important ones are:
- Chavrias River
- Olynthos River (mentioned in the article)
- River of Ormylia

Adding to this, there are a lot of smaller "rivers" or brooks/creeks.

J.

I'm sorry Johnny but the only rubbish seems to be what you are saying.One river doesn't mean the whole area is covered with rubbish.you are right to bring attention to the one area but not to Halkidiki as a whole.I will be diving there again this year and will not worry about pollution apart from the usual litter that the locals and the tourist, and by tourist I include the Greek tourist that come to the area, all leave behind instead of taking it away.Odyssey dive club will again in April clean all the beaches above and below the water on all the sites that they use.if you are so concerned then please come along and give them a hand

Roy. I think you and your diving club are doing a great work.

I am not saying all of Halkidiki is polluted. It is not.
But there are several risk situations like the example I referred to. We must look at the facts, and the facts are that this river(s) are pumping out polluted water into the sea, and all places we go to is situated beside the sea.

WHY DON'T THE AUTHOROTIES TAKING THE PROPER ACTIONS ? Is it because the problem is unknown, and because of this there is yet no local opinion about it?

I agree that any area that has a problem must be tackled.Unless the locals complain to the council then nothing will get done.Is this in a blue flag area

There are no rivers in the area of Halkidiki and a beach can not get a blue flag if the water is polluted.

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Nikos
Forum Admin
nikos at halkidiki.com

Nikos,
If you are not familiar with the area of Halkidiki, please look at a map and there you find the rivers I mentioned. In the tourist maps of Halkidiki you are getting when you rent a car, all this rivers are clearly marked. If anybody don't trust a map, please go and look for your self, if you see the rivers or not in real life....

Johnny,

I live in Halkidiki. There are no rivers in Halkidiki.

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Nikos
Forum Admin
nikos at halkidiki.com

Nikos,
I also live in Halkidiki and there are rivers, although not as big as Strimonas.

Den ixeres gia auta ?!

Johny is right; he should not be condemned, but supported! The outsiders do not know what horrors are going on. Raw sewage is being dumped into the sea.

During the summer unless there has been a large thunderstorm you will find that on Kassandra an I imagine Sithonia the rivers dry up.Maybe up towards Salonica sewage goes into the sea but not on the fingers.As a diver I am in the water every day and see no sewage.The real problem is the amount of rubbish mostly plastic that gets into the water.This is caused by tourist and locals alike.If everyone that saw rubbish in the water or on the beach took a piece awayit would be a huge help or join the beach clean ups that Odyssey dive club organise

All I would say Roy, have you heard of the saying "don't feed the trolls, as they keep coming back for more". No matter what you or I and all the others say about the sea being clean etc, they will keep coming back. I agree about the plastic, and it is a shame that tourists, Greeks included, do not pick up their plastic and take it home. I do my bit anyway, if I see any plastic bottles in the sea or on the beach near me I take them to the bin.

Looking forward to swimming in that lovely sea in June.

I'll be there from April until November and if I see any sewage I will of course say sorry to Johnny

Hello again...
The summer is approaching. Hope you all are beeing alert on these environmental problems mentioned above (plastics and sewage in the sea..) If you have interest and time, go and have a look - and of course also smell - for your selfes on these rivers mentioned above. Please, ask around, how the sewage is beeing taking care of in "your" village/place. Help to put the environmental question of Halkidiki on the agenda! It will be good for us all - both for the tourists as well as for us who are living here. Denying these problems will in the short run maybe be positive for us - but in the longer run it will not.

Johhny

Hello,
Soon It's time for the Eastern Holidays. If You are going to Halkidiki...please think about these problem concerning the sewage being put out into the seas of Halkidiki - and try to do something about it....