Greek judges have suspended dredging works by China Cosco Shipping off Piraeus harbour, threatening to block construction of a €100m ($113m) cruiseship pier.

Local activists fear that the material Cosco is digging up from the sea floor off Piraeus, before dumping it further out in the Saronic Gulf, is toxic and poses a grave environmental threat.

The Council of State, Greece’s top administrative court, ordered all dredging to stop until a full hearing into the matter, possibly as late as October.