Court orders works to halt at Pentakomo port over seal population
The administrative court issued an interim order to suspend construction work on the new port at Pentakomo over fears that it may impact the area’s native Mediterranean monk seal population.
The ruling suspends a decision made by the urban planning department in February giving the go-ahead for the beginning of construction in the area, with a final hearing on the matter set to be held in due course.
Ornithological charity BirdLife Cyprus described the ruling as a “landmark moment for environmental justice in Cyprus”.
“It is the first time a project is halted solely on environmental grounds, and it is a major win for us and for everyone fighting to defend nature. This sets a legal precedent for the Cypriot justice system, strengthening the ability of citizens and organisations to seek legal protection for nature,” it said.
Looking ahead to the next court date, the charity said that “the legal battle is not over yet”, that it is “continuing the fight”, and thus made a call for financial donations to cover its legal expenses as it continues to fight to halt the port’s construction.
The charity described the Mediterranean monk seal as “one of the rarest marine mammals in the world” and had earlier said that there are as few as 20 of them left in Cyprus.
The agriculture ministry had last month confirmed that numbers had seen a slight uptick, but the ministry’s monk seal monitoring programme’s head Charalambos Nicolaou warned against complacency.
“We cannot afford to be complacent because the population is still small, and the threats are numerous. People must be very careful not to disturb the seals if they spot them,” Nicolaou said.
He also urged the public to not approach the animals or enter sea caves, given that they serve as shelters for the seals.