The Hellenic Cancer Society this week lobbed a new year's "bombshell" proposal to ban the use of fireplaces in Greece's major urban areas, calling on households to avoid using the latter for heating purposes, and demanding that the state to impose strict relevant legislation, hefty fines and building codes that outlaw the building of fireplaces in new dwellings.
In an announcement widely reported in the local media, the the Cancer Society charged that fireplaces in urban areas generate emissions and fine particles extremely dangerous for public health due to their damaging effects on air quality, both indoors and outdoors.
The proposal generated heated debates on the airwaves.
