Quarry battle triumph for Alhaurin de la Torre

ALHAURIN de la Torre has won a legal battle against the companies running quarries in the nearby hills.

On September 22, a Malaga court sentenced the companies to pay €1,246,280 to the town’s Quarry Foundation, which had taken the companies to court for breach of contract after they failed to make contributions included in an agreement the parties signed in January 2006.

The contributions agreed upon were to be used to cover costs of adapting quarries to environmental needs, providing training, encouraging sports activities and supporting local social groups and associations, yet the companies stopped making payments during the recession claiming that the conditions had changed.

The case was taken to court, and now a judge has ruled that, although the quarrying sector has been hit hard by the recession, it was one of the most active companies beforehand and circumstances could not be considered to have changed enough to call on the ‘rebus sic statibus’ doctrine which allows contracts to be broken under certain circumstances.

Although the defence now has 20 days to appeal, Alhaurin Mayor, Joaquin Villanova has said he is very pleased with the result and that it “has brought justice to the people of Alhaurin de la Torre at last.”