An illegal concrete batching plant in the Mġarr countryside has been shut down after amassing €18,000 in fines and having its bid to sanction illegalities refused by the Planning Authority. 

In a statement on Monday, the PA said that the illegal plant, which operated in an Outside Development Zone area known as il-Palma, has been shut down and sealed off by compliance and enforcement officers. 

Times of Malta had reported on the concrete plant in May, noting that the factory had been operating for more than a year and was in the process of expanding further.

The site is protected for its high scenic value and ecological importance. The PA first issued the site owner, Carmel Camilleri, with an enforcement notice in 2020.

Camilleri subsequently tried to sanction the illegal site, but that application was turned down by the Planning Commission on April 30. 

“In spite of an enforcement notice and following site inspections, the authority noticed that the illegalities and operation on site were expanding.

"The illegalities included further excavation works and the increase in floor area of an illegal structure,” the PA said in a statement. 

The operation was eventually shut down after additional daily fines led to the money being owed to the PA topping €18,000. 

Most of the heavy plant machinery and vehicles on site have now been removed following direct action by the PA and police force.

In its statement, the PA said that the contravener will be made to clear out all remaining machinery and equipment to “revert the site back to its oriġinal state”.