Gozo WasteServ project at Tal-Klus to be completed by the end of this year

by Gozo News · February 18, 2015

The Minister for Sustainable Development, the Environment and Climate Change Leo Brincat, together with the Minister for Gozo Anton Refalo, visited the work in progress at Tal-Kus transfer station in Gozo this morning.

The Environment Minister said that work on the Gozo Waste Treatment and Transfer Facility in Xewkija, is progressing at a fast pace and is expected to be finished by the end of this year.

It will comprise mainly of a controlled facility for the reception, sorting, processing, interim storage and transfer of wastes originating from Gozo and Comino.

The new facility will cater for a variety of waste streams. Dry recyclables will be sorted and baled at this facility prior to further treatment or export. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) will be compacted in hermetically sealed containers and transferred to Malta for further treatment. Bulky waste will be shredded where possible, compacted or baled and transferred to Malta.

The Minister was accompanied on his visit by the Minister for Gozo Dr Anton Refalo, and by the Chairman and CEO of WasteServ, who said that, “WasteServ will continue in its commitment to enlarging its work in the private sector, whatever its task will be in the future. The company will continue to be an essential component for the success of the Waste Management Plan, which will be updated and reviewed by the end of 2017.”

The Minister for Gozo reiterated the importance of the project for Gozo, saying that it would also address the handling of recycled materials on the island, with the grey bags being processed in the plant, not just a proportion, as it is at the present, with the facility in il-Qortin within Nadur only processing a proportion of Gozo’s recyclable waste. This will therefore reduce the pressure on the Sant’Antnin facility in Marsascala, he said.

The new facility will be roofed over, which will help prevent rubbish overflow and smells spreading into the surrounding areas, the Minister said. With the height of the roof being only 1 metre higher than the surrounding area, and finished in a colour similar to its surroundings, it will therefore also be minimising the visual impact.

The Minister for Gozo said that the projects represents an investment value of roughly €10 million which is being co-financed through EU funds.

Wasteserv said that the transfer station represents a positive shift towards a more sustainable and environmentally friendly system of waste management, where recycling and recovery are the way forward. This development will continue to increase public awareness of the need for positive waste management and contribute towards the recovery of the resources from our waste stream.