Air quality in Naxxar is in a very bad state due to the large amount of dust blown from surrounding quarries, AD candidate Silvan Agius said this morning.

Addressing a news conference, he said there is one large quarry all along Triq il-Fortizza, another between Naxxar and Gharghur, and another along Vjal il-Labour.

As a result, a significant number of Naxxar residents are suffering from respiratory problems, such as asthma, and it was probable that the rate of such problems in Naxxar was higher than in other parts of Malta.

"It is high time that proper action is taken to stop the blowing over of quarry-dust.

"There is need of consistency between what is requested by the Planning Authority from the citizens and that which is being asked of from those producing limestone slabs.

"Citizens' health should be given priority over everything else," he said.

AD chairman Michael Briguglio said the precarious situation in Naxxar was due to the lack of legislation with regard to quarry dust.

"The election of Alternattiva Demokratika brings with it real commitment towards the introduction of clear legislation in this regard," he promised.

AD spokesperson on sustainable development Carmel Cacopardo said MEPA should give priority to the regularisation of these quarries since their operation was not compatible with the residential zones developed around them.

Quarries which were not able to control the dust produced from their operations should be closed, he said adding that since MEPA gave out those permits for residential zones, it had the obligation to create the necessary conditions for quarries to function in such zones without causing problems for residents.