Planning authority closes illegal scrapyard in Siggiewi

A large illegal scrapyard in an ODZ in Siggiewi was closed by officers from the Enforcement Directorate of the Planning Authority, early this morning.

A statement issued by the authority explained that the operation followed a number of ignored warnings to the occupier, where he was asked to fully abide by the enforcement notice and clear out the site.

The site, which covers an area of over 3,700m2, was also subject to three previous direct action operations, two in 2006 and another one in late 2015. 

During the operation, the Authority removed scrap material, including mainly abandoned vehicles, that had been illegally dumped in this makeshift scrapyard.

The Authority added that given the size of the site, the authority had come to an agreement whereby the occupier would remove the illegal scrap in phases, over a period of time. However, after a number of monitoring inspections, the Authority determined that the agreement was being defied, and that the occupier was taking in more material into the yard.

The statment added that a number of policemen also had to intervene during the operations to allow the direct action operation to continue.