Putting the wine industry in the shade

Trust us to try and push square pegs into round holes! The proposal to erect a large tented structure on the old Ta' Qali runway where it will be exactly overlooking one of our leading wine estates is tantamount to awkward industrial bludgeoning.

It is indeed worrying that an initiative that may have its potential should threaten an already existing industry. Our wine industry has made great strides in recent years and it should not be treated to such sledgehammer tactics. Meridiana, the estate threatened to be put in the shade of this huge tent (covering, it has been reported, 1.5 football pitches), has rightly been credited with finally putting Malta on the international wine map.

Although tents may be viewed as "temporary" structures, the huge tent being proposed is not only six storeys high, but it also requires 10,000 man-days - three months - to erect and dismantle. Enough time and enough environmental obstruction, no doubt, to cause weather and daylight traumas to the highly successful vineyard adjacent to it, should the authorities give the project their green light.

There is also no guaranteeing that the Ta' Qali tent would only be there for three months. It being a business venture, it could also stay up to house other events deemed ideal to stage in the area.

Luckily, Ta' Qali still has enough space to spare where the tent could be erected without threatening Malta's infant wine industry.