The local authority that controls the capital’s only landfill said yesterday it was closing the dump for three days, claiming radioactive materials had been illegally buried there.

But the allegation by Ano Liosia Mayor Nikos Papadimas was refuted by Greece’s top atomic energy agency, which said it had found no sign of radiation at the landfill.

“A surface survey and an examination of the first underground samples show that radiation levels are fully within normal limits,” the Hellenic Atomic Energy Committee (HAEC) said in a statement.

HAEC said that samples from deeper points were being taken at spots indicated by Ano Liosia municipal officials, and the final results should be available in two days’ time.

Earlier, Papadimas had claimed that radioactive material was buried at the Ano Liosia dump three months ago, and municipal officials alleged that high radiation levels had been recorded in the area. The association of Attica municipal and local authorities, which runs the dump, asked the government to ensure that the site remains open.