The second stage of an urban plan in Nea Makri and Rafina is completed, and an area of 257.90 hectares (2,579 stremmas), will become safe, sustainable, resilient and protected, the Ministry of Environment & Energy said on Wednesday, as the appellate court is convening on the Mati tragedy.

A joint ministerial decision involving the ministries of Environment & Energy, Culture, Maritime Affairs & Insular Policy approved the urban plan and its application for Nea Makri, Marathonas, and Rafina, areas in East Attica affected by the deadly fire in the Mati area in 2018. The plan also approved the environmental terms of all plumbing and port works, as well as a coastal promenade.

The Environment minister said it took 5 years to complete stage one and two of the urban plan, given the region's unique problems and features, but it was much shorter than the 20 or 30 years normally required review and approval. 

Under the plan, five urban units are foreseen that were part of the sprawl in Marathonas and Rafina-Pikermi townships: Aghia Marina and Mati (2 units in Marathonas Municipality); and Kokkino Limanaki, Skoufeika and Pefkonas (3 units in the Rafina-Pikermi Municipality). 

Each of the units will include housing zones, communal spaces, traffic networks, sidewalks, stream drainage zones, and others.

Zones will also be marked as geologically acceptable or not for building, for the purpose of protecting the area from earthquakes and possible landslides. Additionally, drainage and small dams will be built to reduce the possibility of flooding, compared to the present state. The port and coastal areas will also be strengthened against further erosion.

Environment & Energy Minister Thodoros Skylakakis called the plan "a new era of reconstruction for Mati now begins."