Paphos concrete manufacturers and representatives of quarrying companies on Wednesday are protesting with their heavy vehicles outside the Presidential Palace in Nicosia in a bid to express concern about their future.
The protest – at the same time the Cabinet meets – is expected to cause traffic congestions both on the Paphos-Nicosia highway as well as at the capital’s central Presidential Palace area, Philenews reports.
They are angry over accused the state’s “empty promises” as evidenced by the imminent announcement of an Akamas local plan which will not include a quarry zone.
Some 60 heavy vehicles of ready-mix concrete companies set off from Paphos heading towards the Presidential Palace at seven in the morning. They were just outside Nicosia by 9:15 in the morning.
The protesters argue that raw materials have all but run out in existing quarries and that the situation is especially dire in Androlikou.
Large works, planned and underway, such as the breakwaters on Paphos beaches, the expansion of Latsi port and the Polis Chrysochou highway are in dire danger because of the shortages, a spokesman said.
The Agriculture Ministry’s response is that designating any new area a quarry zone without undertaking any studies would violate relevant European Directives and national legislation.
