Rhodope beekeepers expect support from the government
The fires that broke out in the Rhodope and Evros regions of Greece last summer caused great damage to large areas.
Large forest fires, which could not be brought under control for weeks, caused the destruction of houses, businesses, vehicles, animals, tens of thousands of cultivated areas as well as thousands of hives of bees in some settlements, while in some areas, bees were seriously affected by smoke and their productivity decreased.
In recent days, farmers and livestock breeders have been organising frequent protests in the Rhodope and Evros regions. Beekeepers, whose bees were burnt in the fires and affected by the smoke, also support these protests and ask the government to compensate their damages.
While some beekeepers in the Evros region have been supported by the government, beekeepers from Rhodope have not received any support yet.
The bee breeders of Şapçılı, whose bees were adversely affected by the smoke of the big fire that lasted for days, react to the fact that they were not asked by the authorities about the damages they suffered from fire and smoke.
Hüseyin Hacı Hafız, a beekeeper residing in the town of Şapçı, is one of the beekeepers whose bees were adversely affected by the fires and suffered financial losses.
"No official ever asked what the damage was"
Hüseyin Hacı Hafız, who told MILLET about the problems of beekeepers living in the Şapçı region, is one of the honey producers who were affected by the big fire that started last summer in the Evros region, which could not be brought under control for days, spread to a very large area and threatened the town of Şapçı and the surrounding villages within the borders of Şapçı-Maronia Municipality.
Hüseyin Hacı Hafız has been breeding bees and producing honey since 2009. During the fire days, his beehives were located in an area between the town of Şapçı and the village of Kalaycıdere. Haji Hafiz said that his beehives did not surrender to the flames in the big fire, but the bees were seriously affected by the smoke that lasted for days in the region, and stated that the bee swarms in the hives decreased. Haci Hafız stated that due to the decrease in the bee swarms, the bees were even weaker in autumn and winter months, which had a serious negative impact on honey production, and that the honey obtained this year was halved compared to other years.
Hüseyin Hacı Hafız reacted by stating that the government provided support to beekeepers in some settlements in the Evros region, but no official asked him and those like him who produce honey in the Şapçı region what is your loss.
"We want support from the government for our beekeepers from Rhodope"
Halit Halil Ibram, President of the Rhodope Environmentalist Bees and Bee Lovers Association, informed MILLET about the problems faced by beekeepers after the fires and asked for support from the government for honey producers.
The president of the association Halit Halil Ibram said in his statement: "Beekeepers are among those who suffered from the fires that occurred in our Rhodope region last summer, which started in the Evros region, spread to a wide area and reached our region of Şapçı. Along with the fires in the Rhodope region, drought has also caused losses in bees and a decrease in honey production. For example, hundreds of pine trees were destroyed in a fire in Yassıköy Municipality. This means that there are no more places to take bees for pine honey or other honey. The burning of the pine groves in Yakada has had a negative impact on us as well as livestock breeders. Therefore, when we consider all these reasons, the losses of us beekeepers are great. We ask the government authorities to recognise the problems of the honey producers from Rhodope who are adversely affected by the fires and to compensate the damages incurred."
