Filenews 28 December 2020 - by Lucas Parpas
There are growing voices of protest from environmental organisations who are opposed to the launched permit to operate another quarry on the edge of the Androlikos community in the Akamas region, next to the one that is already operating.
The Movement of Ecologists – Citizens' Cooperation argues that people are asking the Turkish Cypriot Property Management Branch to lease Turkish Cypriot pieces of a total area of 110,228 square meters for the purpose of latomization/mining of rocks and a road to this area has already been carved, without any lease and/or licensing having been secured so far.
"The assurances and declarations by the respective Governments and Agencies, for at least a decade, that quarrying activities will end with the depletion of existing (and large-scale) quarries, seem to be far from reality. We emphasize that the existing quarry zone and the existing quarries are located in gorges and in their highlands and cause enormous destruction to biodiversity, the natural and unique terrain of the area but also to its geological record, especially in the paleontological fossils of the gorges", say ecologists.
As they also claim, some of the existing latomists, operating in the region, have also intervened in Natura2000 areas where, following complaints from environmentalists, they paid meagre fines which they collected in multiple amounts, after selling the illegally mined rocks, and without even restoring the area of the above illegal mines.
"The environmental disaster in Androlikos has nothing to envy from the destruction of pentadylos. For pentadactyl all parties shed crocodile tears. For Androlikou few react except the Movement of Ecologists and environmental organizations", they complain in their announcement.
As they also point out, the administrative area of Androlikos runs through a significant number of gorges which are part of the European network Natura2000 – Akamas Peninsula, while in 2016 the gorges were declared a National Forest Park!
"Three wonderful, unique beauty and value gorges have literally already been surrounded by quarries. The mining has come within a stone's throw of them. The land that is requested to be leased is located in most of it - if not fully - in an area of Natura2000 - Akamas Peninsula, where the natural relief and geological reserve form the European protected seasonal lakes that are very important for birdlife.
If this huge area tangent to the petratis gorge between livestock areas and in direct proximity to the settlement of Androlikos is granted, it will be dealt the final blow to an area that is already largely a skull place," they warn.
It is worth noting that other environmental organisations have already voted against the granting of another permit to operate a new quarry on the borders of Androlikos, some of which are already moving to Parliament, asking for its intervention, so as not to find any fait accompli.
