A resident of Ghaxaq has sent us these pictures showing rampant illegal dumping in a site on the outskirts of the village, near the football ground.

Several materials have been dumped in the otherwise beautiful spot, which situated next to open countryside.

Wood pallets, animal feed bags and cement bags filled with rubble and dirt, plastic bottles, limestone blocks, an armchair and broken tiles are among the items that were discarded in the area by selfish individuals.

The resident who sent us the pictures said he had contacted the Cleansing Department a number of weeks back but no action was taken by the authorities.

Several areas in Malta and Gozo have recently fallen victim to illegal dumping of construction waste as the country faced a serious shortage of places where the maerial could be properly disposed of.

This newspaper witnessed dumping in locations like Zebbug and Maghtab.

The government recently announced that ten unused quarries were given permits to start receiving inert construction waste. Contractors can deposit their waste at these facilities against a fee.

However, some individuals would rather dump truckloads of bricks, tiles and other materials inside pristine valleys than make use of these facilities.