The Coalition for Gozo, composed of the Gozitan eNGOs Din l-Art Helwa Ghawdex, Ghawdix and Wirt Ghawdex, has issued a joint statement expressing shock at how the Board of the Planning Authority approved by a 7 – 1 vote (the Ghajnsielem Local Council being the only entity that voted against) the upgrade of an existing concrete batching plant facility (Class 5B).

The Coalition said that the facility (PA/03966/19 at Triq il-Qala, Ghajnsielem) will be relocated to an adjacent site beneath existing site levels.

It noted that the upgrading will consist of additional ancillary offices and underground ancillary parking, in the process taking up far more agricultural land. The existing batching plant spanned 1.850 m2. The proposed plant will take up 3,550 m2.

The Coalition stated that it is “highly concerned about the further take-up and formalisation of ODZ land through requests that can neither be deemed necessary nor justified, and which stand to threaten the integrity of the rural environment. The fragmentation of this site through the proposed development will lead to further land take-up than originally approved, since the block is shifted further into the site and away from the boundary.”

It pointed out that the concrete batching plant facility falls within a Strategic Open Space Gap as per the Gozo and Comino Local Plan. “The plant will impact the scenic value and character of the Strategic Open Space Gap. Major concerns also remain regarding light pollution at the area. At present, this is already a serious issue, with glare severely affecting vehicle drivers.”

Even worse, The Coalition added, is that the new plans are proposing underground excavations at a site which lies exactly above the safe-guarded 100 and 200 metres buffer zones for underground water aquifers. “The Planning Authority ignored its very own provisions in this regard and issued the permit anyway.”

The Coalition said that there are plans to excavate a large area to a depth of over 10 metres directly above the perched aquifer of Ghajnsielem, as designated in the Gozo and Comino Local Plan policy GZ-UTIL-7 (Map 14.2-E), within the water protection zone.

“Remarkably, the Planning Authority’s case officer, ERA and WSC all disregarded this water protection zone, established by their own experts,” it said.

The Coalition added that, “the developer’s architect argued that the proposed upgrade will mean that illegally disturbed land, presently used for the purposes of parking, will be freed up.”

The Coalition concluded by saying that “that this is not a valid premise for causing further harm elsewhere. The illegality should not have been committed in the first place.”

Photos: Coalition for Gozo

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