The Public Prosecutor for the law suit over Nerja’s illegal dump has recommended that the Mayor of Nerja be banned from office if found guilty.
The actual recommendation for Mayor Alberto Armijo’s responisiblity concerning the Río de la Míel refuse dump is two years’ imprisonment and 18 months banned from holding office.
It is the same recommendation for the Councillor for Urban Development and Housing, Mari Nieves Atencia (PP), as well as the same prison sentence for seven local builders who used it for disposing of building waste.
Furthermore, both the Mayor and the Councillor would face a fine of 7,300 euros (20 euros a day over 12 months). However, the local builders are facing a stiffer fine of 18,250 each
He has dropped charges against other politicians; Mayor Rosa Arrabal between 2015 and 2019 amongst them. He has also exonerated the Provincial Delegate for the Environment (Junta de Andalucia) Carmen Molera as it cannot be proven that the documents warning of what was happening had became known to her.
The said illegal dump, located in an old quarry, was operative between June 1998 and September 2016, thanks to the authorisation given by the then Mayor, Sr. Armijo. This permission was given just one year before the area was officially declared part of the Parque Natural de las Sierras Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama; an eventuality that the Mayor was obviously aware of. During those 18 years a total of 802,000 cu/m of all kinds of waste were deposited there, despite its status as a natural park.
During that time the Junta opened at least four disciplinary proceedings ordering its closure, all of which expired without result. Despite official complaints from political parties and even the association of waste disposal companies, the dump continued in use lacking environmental approval, anti-fire protocols etc.
Lastly, the Public Prosecutor has calculated that it would cost 10.8m euros to put the land back as it was, owing to the mass of waste of all kinds.
Editorial comment: two points! The ban should be for life as the said Mayor, if found guilty, will have shown his incompatibility with responsible office and secondly, off with his pods.
(News: Nerja, Axarquia, Costa del Sol, Malaga, Andalucia – Photo: E. Cabezas)