The capital’s first industrial park is to be built on the slopes of Mount Parnitha, a protected area, part of which was ravaged in a huge forest fire last year, according to court ruling revealed yesterday.

The decision by the plenary session of the Council of State, the country’s highest administrative court, allows the creation of a 50-hectare industrial park in the Afidnes area, which falls within the protected section of Mount Parnitha.

The court had rejected plans by the Public Works Ministry to create the site in 2006, arguing that this would violate a presidential decree safeguarding Mount Parnitha.

The final decision by the plenary session, however, approves requests by the ministry for exceptions to this decree. This about-face is believed to have followed a personal appeal by Minister Giorgos Souflias. The 2006 court ruling had stated: “Provisions that aim to protect the natural environment and, in particular, the mountains of Attica ... cannot determine new uses for land or allow a boost in facilities or activities that would harm delicate ecosystems.”

Commenting on the development, the director of conservation group WWF Hellas Dimitris Karavellas, said: “The scheme raises questions, to say the least.”