Contractor Carmel Polidano (Caqnu) was today fined €100,000 by Magistrate Anthony Vella after being found guilty of cutting down three protected trees and demolishing a rubble wall.
The case took place in Main Street, Balzan on or before March last year.
Magistrate Vella said the court felt that the environment should be protected in the strictest way possible. The people’s livelihood depended on achieving a fine balance. It was why the law imposed tough penalties on those who committed crimes against the environment.
In this case, the accused had ignored the scheduling of a property, an emergency conservation order and an enforcement notice issued by Mepa. This showed a lack of respect for authority and the law. Such an attitude needed to stop once and for all.