Appeals board urged to reject development proposal

The Planning Appeals Board is today expected to take a final decision on the proposal to build a waste sorting plant in Wied Garnaw.

The proposal has already been turned down twice by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority's Development Control Commission, in July 2004 and in December 2005.

After the initial decision, the developer requested a reconsideration of his application as permitted by law. The case is now up for appeal.

The Save Wied Garnaw Action Group has urged the Planning Appeals Board to uphold the DCC's decisions and to refuse the application.

It said that according to the Malta Structure Plan, no such development should take place in Wied Garnaw as this valley falls outside the development zone.

The draft Malta South Local Plan classifies Wied Garnaw as a "valley protection zone" because of its agriculture and ecological value.

In summer 2004, the group had presented a petition signed by about 4,000 people calling upon Mepa to put a stop to industrial and commercial developments in Wied Garnaw. Another petition with about 6,000 signatories had been presented to Parliament.

A reversal of the DCC's decisions would not only be of great detriment to southern Malta's scarce natural environment. It would also send the message that development zone boundaries can be ignored and agricultural land targeted for development, the group maintained.

It said it fully supported waste sorting initiatives but pointed out that such industrial activities should be sited in industrial estates, not green areas.

Nature Trust also urged Mepa to confirm its decision to refuse applications for the building of the waste separation facility.

It said it would keep supporting the Save Wied Garnaw Action Group and the residents of Gudja, Luqa, Ghaxaq, Tarxien and Sta Lucija in their proactive approach to deter further development in the valley.

Nature Trust called on Mepa to stop considering applications for development in areas classified as outside development zones.

This, it said, was giving Mepa a bad name and causing conscientious citizens to devote time and energy to lobbying for refusal of applications which should never have been considered in the first instance.

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