In April last year, it was announced that the Office of the Ombudsman, following a request by Opposition Spokesperson for the Environment Robert Cutajar, would be investigating the roadworks being carried out at the time in Comino by the Ministry for Gozo.

Architect Alan Saliba, the Commissioner responsible for the Environment and Planning within the Ombudsman’s Office, sent notifications to the Planning Authority and to the Environment and Resources Authority and informed them of the investigation into the case.

After opening the investigation, the Commissioner within the Office of the Ombudsman found that the Planning Authority “infringes the provisions of the Development Planning Act and it was recommended that the Planning Authority should immediately issue an Enforcement Notice and impose fines to be used for the benefit of the environment of Comino.”

However, he said that the PA “did not accept the Commissioner’s recommendations and the case was referred to the Prime Minister and to the House of Representatives in line with the Ombudsman Act.”

The Ministry for Gozo had said last year that the works “only consist of improving the existing infrastructure to remove any danger to those who frequent the popular Blue Lagoon beach and are in accordance with an ERA permit.”

The controversial roadworks on Comino had also previously been condemned by Friends of the Earth Malta, who called them “illegal.”

According to the latest Case Notes from the Office of the Ombudsman the works investigated consist of the construction of a service culvert underlying the road leading to Blue Lagoon bay and the deposit of construction material left exposed to the elements.

It said that the works included the excavation of a trench to accommodate the service culvert constructed with concrete blocks and slabs.

The Office noted that as the works were still underway and owing to the fact that these works are located in an area of exceptional value (Natura 2000 site), “this case was fast-tracked in order to limit any irreversible damages, especially considering that one could have easily avoided this service culvert by using clean energy.”

The Planning Authority submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman that “these works were authorised under Article 70 of the Development Planning Act which excludes emergency works carried out by the Government in relation to public safety from being considered as development and hence do not require a development permission.’

On further investigation, the Office said that it resulted that the Ministry for Gozo started corresponding with the Planning Authority in early 2020 for the authorisation to carry out works on the retaining wall and the surface of this road.

“The service culvert did not figure in these early discussions and it was only eventually brought up in early 2021, months after the Planning Authority recognised that the works discussed do not constitute development,” the Office said.

The Environment and Resources Authority stopped the works that were unsatisfactory and issued a nature permit for the works to proceed. “However, the issue of compliance with the Development Planning Act remained,” the Office said.

The Commissioner responsible for the Environment and Planning commended the preparation for underground services before surfacing works avoiding unnecessary costs and also the fact that although there is no requirement for the Government to obtain authorisations from the Planning Authority to utilise Article 70, the Government adopted this procedure for such a sensitive site.

However, the Commissioner found that the Planning Authority “was not informed about this intervention that would significantly disturb the natural habitat of such a sensitive site and that although the retaining wall and the road surface may qualify as emergency works it does not necessarily mean that the service culvert qualifies as well for the simple reason that it has to be carried during the same period.”

The Commission concluded that the works on the service culvert carried out during February and March 2021 by a contractor commissioned by the Ministry for Gozo “infringes the provisions of the Development Planning Act and it was recommended that the Planning Authority should immediately issue an Enforcement Notice and impose fines to be used for the benefit of the environment of Comino.”

It also found that “similar service culverts should require a full development permit after carrying out the relative consultations according to law.’

The Case Notes show that the Planning Authority “did not accept the Commissioner’s recommendations and the case was referred to the Prime Minister and to the House of Representatives in line with the Ombudsman Act.”

Photos: Friends of the Earth Malta

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