A Court action has been filed by seven organisations against the recently introduced Legal Notice allowing the regularisation of ODZ illegalities.

In their judicial protest, the organisations argue that the introduction of this Legal Notice is illegal since a Strategic Environment Assessment (SEA) was not carried out. The conduction of an SEA is a legal obligation when planned laws and policies are going to affect SAC and Natura 2000 sites.

They also state that the Legal Notice contradicts several laws, policies and conventions, such as Maltese planning law and the Aarhus Convention which establish the right of appeal for third parties. There is no such right under this Legal Notice.

The organisations from both Gozo and Malta, said in a joint statement that they have “consistently and strongly opposed this legislation intended to appease developers and reward illegalities in our countryside.”

They argued that, “while the original 2016 regularisation scheme only accepted sites within the development boundaries, the new scheme refers to ODZ sites.”

“It will include illegal development which goes against planning policies,” the organisations said. “Thus, policies which are supposed to prevent such development from being allowed will now be overruled by developers seeking to regularise their illegal developments in exchange for a paltry fine.”

They also pointed out that “contrary to the impression given by the Government’s statements, the illegalities that can be regularised via this Legal Notice are not limited to tiny areas which may have accidentally slipped over the development zone. Alarmingly, there is no limit on the scale of ODZ illegalities that can be regularised.”

The scheme will even allow for the regularisation of illegalities within Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) and Natura 2000 sites, they said.

The strong opposition to this scheme expressed during the public consultation process last November was “totally ignored without justification.” The organisations went on to say that, “reportedly, even the Government’s own authority, the Environment and Resources Authority’s (ERA), had its concerns overridden.”

The seven organisations concluded by saying that they are determined to take forward their legal challenge to this “shameful scheme. The Government-sponsored ravaging of our countryside has to stop.”

The organisations filing the judicial protest are: BirdLife Malta, Din l-Art Helwa, Flimkien ghal Ambjent Ahjar, Ghawdix, Moviment Graffitti, Ramblers Association Malta and Wirt Ghawdex.

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