The Planning Department yesterday placed a stop order on industrial dumping at Devonshire Marsh after local environment groups raised an alarm that the waste could severely affect the area.

The Bermuda National Trust and the Bermuda Audubon Society were alerted by members of the public on Thursday after massive pieces of construction equipment were discarded in the area.

Conservationists from the organisations and Government went to the area and found "dirty" fill including metal, wood, rebar and wiring.

Former Government conservation officer David Wingate said this dirty dumping could disturb the local ecology.

His replacement Jeremy Medeiros ordered a lone worker to halt on Thursday night and contacted the Planning Department's enforcement officer who began investigating the dumping.

National Trust environment and conservation officer Peter Drew revealed that the dumping was a "slight" encroachment into agriculturally zoned area, not a larger violation as initially suspected.

Dr. Wingate said the area is "valuable" and is used to graze Bermuda's dairy cattle.

The problem with using marshlands as landfills, he continued, is that the fill can easily destroy the life in the area.

Once the trash settles on the bottom of a peat-filled marsh, it begins making layers which causes the marsh's surface area to rise above water level. Drying up the area causes the grass to grow at a different rate which can destroying other fauna.

"That's what happened to Pembroke Marsh. That's why you have that great mountain in Pembroke," he said.

Local environmental groups knew the area was being used for industrial purposes but last week became aware that more material was being dumped there.

Mr. Drew said the incident could be "difficult" to investigate because the land that was being dumped on is for sale and development in that area has been ongoing for some 12 years.

But the Trust would still pursue the case on two grounds, he said. Firstly, that there are no barriers separating the agriculture lands from the dump and secondly, there is an encroachment.

Planning Department director Rudolph Hollis said the investigating officers issued the stop order to the suspected company and the land owners. The Department did not publicly disclose the name of their suspects and the investigation continues into next week.