By Marinos Pavlikas *:
Hundreds are daily complaints from the residents of the province of Famagusta regarding the existence and burning of illegal landfills in the area. Garbage burning phenomena are found in Avgorou, Liopetri and Paralimni.
The problem is timeless, according to the Movement of Ecologists-Citizens' Cooperation, since the competent Ministries of Agriculture and Interior have repeatedly requested explanations by mail regarding the existence of illegal landfills and the process of creating Green Points.
For her part, the Environment Commissioner last April requested in a written letter to the Municipality of Paralimni and the Department of Environment the solution of the problem that the residents of Paralimni exist, since according to the complaints, in an area within the Dead Zone it becomes uncontrollable and illegal. dumping garbage.
Speaking to the newspaper SIMERINI on Sunday, the Mayor of Paralimni condemned any phenomenon of illegal dumping of garbage, stating that efforts are being made in this direction, noting that the control of illegal dumping of garbage was one of the reasons why the request last September to the Government for the development of the Dead Zone area.
"The responsibility for the burning of garbage does not lie with the local authority, but with those who carry out these actions in order to find old metal objects"
In his turn, the President of the Community of Avgorou, Panagiotis Michailas, told "S" that the Community Council is aware of the illegal dumping of garbage at the border with the Community of Liopetri. Nevertheless, he condemned through his statements the existence of the illegal landfill, noting, however, that this is a timeless request that has existed for decades and after the closure of an old quarry that existed in the area. Mr. Michailas also stated that the responsibility for the burning of garbage does not lie with the local authority but with experts who, as he said, proceed with these actions to find old metal objects.
The province of Famagusta without Green Points
According to the Mayor of Avgoros, the Community has in the past asked the Government to create a Green Point, which will solve the long-standing problem that afflicts the residents of the area for the dumping of recyclable materials.
Nevertheless, the implementation of the Green Points network has proceeded without the involvement of the Community, as in the past there has been a strong reaction from Avgorou to the creation of a Green Point. Despite the fact that the Community Council was subsequently relocated requesting inclusion in the network, however, in a letter to the Ministry of Interior to the Community on 1/2/2016, it informed that due to the start of the network construction procedures, its inclusion was no longer possible.
A similar request for the creation of a Green Point was sent by the Municipality of Deryneia, which is foreseen according to the design of the Green Points networks, to be served by the Green Point of Paralimni.
A representative of the Ministry of Interior told "S" that in the plans of the competent Ministry there are 22 green spots, 8 in Nicosia, 6 in Larnaca, 4 in Limassol and 4 in Paphos. Of the 22 points, only those of Paphos have been put into operation, while the rest are in the process of announcing tenders in cooperation with their Management Councils appointed by the Union of Municipalities and the Union of Communities.
The delay, according to the responsible official, is due to the Local Government Elections of last December, which coincided with the preparation of the relevant terms of the offers. Nevertheless, the delivery and operation of the remaining Green Points is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2018.
The fact of not including a point for free Famagusta makes sense, of course. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, this is due to past strong reactions from local authorities who were candidates to host the recycling site. Therefore, the province of Famagusta has not been included in the initial plans for the creation of Green Points.
A similar reaction took place in 2015 from a portion of Sotira residents, who reacted and caused the cancellation of the creation of a Closed Waste Transfer Station (SMA), a transit station which was planned to be implemented based on the Strategic Plan Community legislation on the collection, transport, transhipment, treatment and final disposal of generated household waste. The whole project would be beneficial for the pocket of the taxpayers of the province of Famagusta, as it would reduce the costs of transporting waste to the landfill of Kosi.
The delay observed in the creation of points of disposal of recyclable materials, led a year and a half ago the Municipality of Paralimni to the creation of a municipal Green Point in the area of Kampos, which is managed by the Municipality itself.
At the same time, by ministerial decision, all responsibilities for the management and creation of material collection areas will soon be transferred from the Ministry of Interior to the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, so that the implementation and control of such projects is carried out exclusively by one ministry and specifically from the Departments of Water Development and Environment.
According to the competent official of the Ministry of Interior, the next step is the expansion of the network of Green Points, under the responsibility of the Department of Water Development and studying the requests of the interested Municipalities.
Cape Greco: From a landfill, park
In the past, an illegal landfill operating in the forest park of Cape Greco provoked strong reactions, with a multitude of complaints about the burning of useless materials. Since the beginning of 2016, however, as the Mayor of Ayia Napa, Giannis Karousos, stated in "S", the illegal landfill has been abolished by a decision of the Municipal Council. In its place, the Municipality has created, today, a park with planting of more than three thousand saplings.
Source: SIMERINI newspaper of Sunday (5/11/2017)