'Environmental terrorists' who proceed with construction work without proper Planning permission should face stiffer financial penalties, Shadow Environment Minister Cole Simons said yesterday.

Mr. Simons was reacting to news reports of illegal excavation work which took place at Ferry Reach this week, threatening an extensive cave system in the area.

According to Government, the number of developments which proceed without proper Planning permission, and then "retroactively" seek permission, is on the rise but new legislation is in the pipeline to try to stamp out these activities.

Mr. Simons called on Government to crack down on "environmental terrorists" who "wilfully" violate Planning and environment laws.

He praised residents in Ferry Reach, and at Gilbert's Bay in Sandys, who have been fighting developers in their neighbourhoods.

Mr. Simons spoke out after a stop order was issued at Anchorage View Lane in Ferry Reach on Tuesday, after land was cleared using an outdated building permit.

Angry residents tried to block the clearing of the land by excavators acting on behalf of owners Tiqyah Holdings.

Before residents won their battle, excavators cleared the land, covering a cave entrance and destroying endemic Bermuda cedar and palmetto trees in the process.

Government officials later discovered the developer's building permit was over two years out of date and applied to a different project.

A stop order was levied and Tiqyah must now seek proper Planning permission before it can proceed.

Mr. Simons and Ministry of Environment Permanent Secretary Brian Rowlinson said yesterday the practice of "build first, worry about permission later" must be stamped out.

"Penalties are too lax and are not deterring people who are flagrantly violating the law," said Mr. Simons.

"Bermuda's environmental enforcement laws must be reviewed, to ensure that they truly deter that criminal element which wilfully violates Bermuda's Planning and environmental laws.

"We need to look at the penalty clauses and enforcement ability."

Mr. Rowlinson said such changes to the legislation are already underway.

"The legislation, as it is written, is too heavily weighted in favour of the offender," he said. "We need to introduce a more effective system of fines and court procedures to make sure we can take action quickly and effectively.

"The Development and Planning Act 1974 is currently being reviewed and the enforcement provisions are a key part of the revisions."

The process of improving the law and its penalties is a lengthy one, however.

The Ministry has been reviewing the legislation for the last four months, but it is unlikely that the new provisions would come into effect until next year.

Mr. Simons said excavation companies that breach Planning laws on behalf of their clients should also be slapped heavy fines when illegal work takes place.

"When it comes to the excavation companies excavating their sites, the excavation must conform with the plans approved by the Department of Planning," Mr. Simons said.

"If the approval documents are not available to the contractor, then the excavator ought not commence his work.

"Contractors ought not to support any excavations which show no evidence of Planning approval, because they too could be liable to a minimum fine of $20,000.

"Our excavating companies have an inherent responsibility to professionally carry out their jobs in accordance with Bermuda's Planning and environmental laws. They cannot and must not be a party to decisions and actions made by irresponsible property owners."

Government also badly needs more enforcement officers, he added.

"In addition, the Ministry of Planning's enforcement division needs to have more adequate resources.

"Are they overworked?" Mr. Simons asked.

Mr. Rowlinson said increasing the number of enforcement officers would not be as effective as increasing fines in stopping illegal building.

"Even with two or three officers, it does not stop individuals from taking the law into their own hands," Mr. Rowlinson said.

There are two enforcement officers in the Planning Department and one at Environmental Protection.

In the last six months, Planning had seen an increase in the number of developers beginning work on sites illegally, then seeking a retroactive permit.

Stiffer penalties would deter this kind of activity and new legislation should make retroactive approval much more difficult to obtain.

"We rely on the cooperation of land owners not to go forward with work without proper approval," Mr. Rowlinson said of the current state of affairs.

"The legislation allows for retroactive permits to be given. In the vast majority of cases, the work commenced is subsequently approved. But in other cases work commenced has damaged the natural environment."

These "nuisance" cases ? as Mr. Rowlinson termed them ? are most worrying to the department.

Revising the Development and Planning Act 1947 in respect of both granting retroactive permits and increasing fines and penalties for illegal builds will be "tied together", he said.

In the meantime, Mr. Simons called on concerned residents to continue to step in and tell developers they would not let illegal work happen in their backyards.

Mr. Simons congratulated the Anchorage View Lane residents for saving "environmentally fragile" caves in the area and residents of Gilbert's Bay, Sandys, for "uncovering the environmental disaster which exists today at Gilbert's Bay, and for the steadfastness in working with the Ministry and National Trust and other environmentalists to have this disaster remedied".

In May, neighbours in the Gilbert's Bay area discovered that 1,000 year-old rock formations and longtail nests were knocked down by resident Henry Talbot to reclaim public access land.

Planning soon launched an investigation that found the land was designated untouchable woodland reserve.

However, in August, Mr. Talbot applied for a retroactive permit to remove "unstable rocks" damaged by Hurricane Fabian.

Mr. Simons said: "The community must do its bit to help police its neighbourhoods to ensure that the irresponsible action, like the action taken earlier this week, by the excavation company which filled the cave and destroyed a number of endemic trees at Ferry Reach, does not reoccur.

"If the community suspects irregularities in their neighbourhoods, its members should feel free to call the Ministry of the Environment. Within the Ministry, you should contact the Minister, or the Enforcement Officer at 297-7756, or 297-7634," he said.