MEPA should review its position - Wirt Ghawdex

The Gozo heritage society Wirt Ghawdex has expressed its concern at the readiness of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) to grant permits for development in areas of known archeological significance on the island.

The recent approval of an application for the construction of a two-storey building with a pool in the vicinity of the Xaghra Stone Circle is a case in point.

So also is the Waste Transfer Station which is to be sited in a disused quarry outside Xewkija.

Excavations carried out by the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage and the Department of Archaeology of the University of Malta in the area known as Ghar ix-Xih, just a few metres from the site, have now confirmed the presence of important archaeological remains dating back to Classical times.

In both cases, it is vital that the authority review its position, before it is too late.