Violence Around Eldorado Gold's Mining Projects in Northern Greece Brings Critics to Canada

A delegation from northern Greece will be visiting Canada from May 26th to 31st, 2013, to alert Canadians to the current situation with Vancouver-based Eldorado Gold’s proposed Skouries and Perama Hill mining projects. The Greek delegation includes the Mayor of Alexandroupoli, Vaggelis Lampakis; Tolis Papageorgiou of Halkidiki; and Maria Kadoglou of Hellenic Mining Watch.

“Mining in the area has always been small-scale and underground, but even this small-scale activity has left the area with a legacy of pollution,” notes Maria Kadoglou. “We are now talking about a huge expansion of mining, incompatible with the scale of the Halkidiki peninsula which is not a desert but a densely populated area with a rich natural environment and cultural history - and the third most popular tourist destination in the country.”

The delegation will be speaking as representatives of the affected communities in Thrace and Halkidiki where there is overwhelming...