In the village of Stagiates in central Greece, residents are protecting a spring that has supplied their community for more than 300 years, resisting the prospect of privatization and demanding restoration of their original water supply. The campaign followed a 2020 decision to route most household water through a neighboring village.
A new study by Maria-Iris Kotzamani and colleagues in the journal Europa XXI describes how this Mount Pelion settlement near Volos organized around Krya Vrysi, or Cold Spring. Water emerges beneath the roots of an old plane tree, and the source has shaped village life for generations. Greece’s 2021 census counted just 106 residents.
Earlier disputes had tested the village. Residents revoked a private bottler’s permission in the 1970s and 1980s after he reportedly took more water than agreed during summer. A community bottling project failed in the 1990s, and residents opposed a 2013 proposal involving private irrigation works. In January 2020, the water utility’s president discussed selling bottled Pelion water.
Greek village turns spring privatization fears into community action
On April 17, 2020, the Volos municipal water utility disconnected the main supply from Krya Vrysi and linked it to Portaria through a backup pipeline. As of July 2024, the village fountain and a few houses still received spring water, researchers reported.
Residents formed the Free Waters initiative, held assemblies, and pursued legal action to demand reconnection. Meetings eventually moved from the village square to the former school. An elected community president began working with the assembly in 2024.
The assembly meets on the first Wednesday of each month and now discusses wider village affairs. Attendance had fallen to about 25 to 30 people by mid-2024, from 80 to 100 soon after the disconnection.
Residents clean irrigation channels, check for pollution and share maintenance costs. They also have water tested after the utility raised concerns about contamination. Their approach draws on knowledge passed down through generations.
Storm damage and traditions keep water campaign in focus
For residents, water also holds deep personal meaning. “I cannot imagine the village without water,” Alexandra, identified by a pseudonym in the study, told researchers. The source and its channels have shaped irrigation, gatherings and daily routines for generations.
When Storm Daniel damaged irrigation channels in 2023, residents discussed repairing them themselves. They also supplied drinking water to people in nearby Volos after the storm contaminated that city’s supply. Movie nights, music events and local celebrations helped draw support for the campaign.
The researchers found that the effort brought residents together and reclaimed shared spaces, including the school and museum. But the village’s official water supply had still not been reconnected to the spring. Depopulation and an aging population threaten the community’s ability to sustain the campaign.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
