5 km from the Churches of Old Goa, St. Augustine Tower and other historical monuments,' the priests have said.

'Old Goa is visited by thousands of tourists and pilgrims every day because of the historical monuments. Having a waste management site within such an area will certainly cause nuisance to the tourists and create a bad image for the state. Besides, Old Goa is a sacred place for all the people in Goa, irrespective of their religious faiths.'

In a letter addressed to parishes all across the state, Maverick Fernandes, executive secretary of the Church-backed Council for Social Justice and Peace, urged all Roman Catholics to be proactive in their campaign against the dumping site.

'We are dispatching this self-explanatory letter sent to the chief minister and all the legislators. You are requested to appraise the faithful about the matter and conscientise them to raise the issue with their respective elected representative by organising a delegation at each village level, preferably including people of other faiths,' the letter states.