Environmental Regulatory Authority (ERA) has fined Manta Aviation Private Limited for building a seaplane platform without the required approval at R. Ifuru, where a domestic airport is operated alongside tourist facilities.
In a statement on Thursday, ERA said Manta Air built a seaplane platform in Ifuru in violation of the Regulation on Environmental Impact Assessment.
According to the regulation, before commencing physical works on a project that could noticeably alter the environment or could have adverse environmental impacts, an environmental impact assessment must be conducted and approval must be obtained from ERA.
However, ERA said Manta Air commenced work on a seaplane platform at Ifuru without completing these processes.
As such, ERA detailed that it had fined Manta Aviation Private Limited by MVR 20,000 last Sunday.
Local airline, Manta Air, currently undertakes domestic operations and seaplane operations.