The Cyprus Environment Ministry has approved the construction of a clay quarry.
It is expected to supply material to local ceramic factories.
The project will be located in the municipality of Pano Lefkara, in the Larnaca district. The total area of the quarry will be 5,017 m2. The clay will be extracted by mechanical excavators and transported by lorry. There are no plans to use explosives during the work. It is expected that approximately 32,566 m3 of material will be extracted over 6-7 years.
According to the EIA, the wider area of the proposed project is largely agricultural. The area where the quarry is proposed has no vegetation, no rare animal or bird habitat, and no agricultural crops. The site has not been used for a long time. Geomorphologically it is almost flat, with small differences in elevation ranging from 365 m to 374 m. There are no buildings on the site and access is via another private property.
According to the Environmental Impact Study, the estimated cost of the project is €100,000 and work will commence as soon as the permit is granted.
The new quarry will be located 5km south of the municipality of Pano Lefkara, 2.5km west of the municipality of Delkipou, 5.5km southeast of the municipality of Litrodontas and 5.7km north of the municipality of Mafiatis, while the nearest residential area is about 2.5km away. It should also be noted that the area of the proposed project falls within the Da2 protection zone of the Lefkara Local Plan, which prohibits mining and quarrying, except for the extraction of red clay. The plant will be adjacent to existing clay quarries, the nearest of which is less than one kilometre away.