Nearly half of the municipalities overseeing Greek towns and cities had no operational planning offices in a 2023 government survey, a new study finds. The gap raises questions about local capacity to manage development as communities face heat and wildfire threats.
Researchers Eleftheria Stamati and Ioannis Trigkas of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens found that 164 of Greece’s 332 municipalities, or 49.4%, had no operational Building Permit and Urban Planning Service, known as YDOM. They published their findings in the Journal of Sustainability, using municipal service data from 2023.
The problem is particularly serious in two regions. In Sterea Ellada, 60% of municipalities lack the service, while the figure is 55.6% in Ipeiros. Both also exceeded the study’s benchmark for vulnerability to heat waves, wildfire danger, and socioeconomic pressures.
Researchers called the overlap a “double gap”: areas facing greater climate challenges also have fewer local technical-planning resources to help address them.
Small and island municipalities have the biggest shortfalls
The shortages are most acute in small or isolated communities. All 35 small island municipalities were listed as having no YDOM service, along with 33 of 36 small mainland or mountainous municipalities. By contrast, 80 of 91 large mainland municipalities and prefecture capitals reported fully operational services.
The picture changes across the country’s 13 larger regions. The South Aegean had the highest share of municipalities without the service, 64.7%, followed by Crete at 62.5%. Yet both had below-benchmark vulnerability scores, showing that limited planning coverage does not always coincide with higher measured climate exposure.
To make the comparison, researchers combined existing climate vulnerability estimates for 52 smaller regional units with government records on municipal services. The climate measure covered heat waves, wildfire danger, and social and economic factors.
Researchers found no statistically significant relationship between vulnerability and the share of municipalities without the planning service.
Why planning offices matter for climate risk in Greek towns
The study did not assess whether individual municipalities could manage emergencies. A missing YDOM does not necessarily mean planning functions are unavailable, since some local governments can use shared or outside services. Nor does an operational office prove a municipality is prepared for disasters.
The findings come as a 2026 Greek law requires municipal and regional fire-prevention planning. The study did not measure compliance with that law but said uniform obligations may weigh differently on local governments with unequal resources.
Researchers identified Sterea Ellada as the most consistent case of overlapping vulnerability and limited technical capacity. Ipeiros’ classification changed under some alternative ways of calculating vulnerability. They said municipal-level reviews are needed before deciding where to direct funding, specialized staff, or technical assistance.
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