The Ministry of Public Works is seeking retroactive planning permission for construction work at Marsh Folly.Plans to construct an oil storage building on the site were advertised in October last year, but the building was built before planning permission was granted.And while a generator building and transformer pad had both been approved for the site, both structures were built in areas different than that on approved plans.As a result, Government is now seeking retroactive planning permission for the oil storage building and the relocation of the generator building and transformer pad.A spokesman for the Ministry of Public Works said the application was filed as a technicality to ensure compliance with planning regulations due to changes in the placement of the generator and transformer pad onsite during construction.The Bermuda Environmental Sustanability Taskforce (BEST) had objected to the proposed oil storage building.In a letter to the Planning Department, Kim Smith of BEST wrote that the building’s proximity to water features had sparked some concern, saying that it appeared the application had been “fast tracked”.She also said that the building would be built in land zoned for open space reserve, but Conyers and Associates responded that the property was an institutional zoned area.They also refuted that the project had been fast tracked, saying it had followed proper planning protocol.BEST Chairman Stuart Hayward reiterated the organisation’s concerns on Tuesday, saying that retroactive applications such as this one are particularly concerning.“BEST has a fundamental issue with retroactive applications in which the applicant, instead of asking for permission, goes ahead with ‘illegal’ construction, then asks for forgiveness,” he said.“We would prefer to see government projects setting a good example for following the rules.”He also noted that there is an inherent conflict between pollution prone activities, such as oil storage, and nature reserves, such as Pembroke Marsh, which was slated to be converted to parkland.“Petroleum products are notorious for leakage, and once leaked, tend to permeate or spread, causing contamination of an area much larger than the leakage point,” he said. “Petroleum products are also potentially poisonous in minute quantities, so the risk is amplified, especially to sensitive areas.”In 2009, the Development Applications Board approved a new four story building on the site, intended to host offices and lab space for the Waste Management Department, the Health Department and the Bermuda Police Service.Also included was the erection of ten “accessory buildings,” including a security office and a generator building, and security fencing.The Ministry was subsequently granted a building permit in 2010 to relocate waste management facilities at the site, widen existing roads and build the accessory buildings as a “phase one” of construction on the project.