Video: Ghadira Road: Ministry to make three proposals to MEPA
Roads Minister Austin Gatt said this afternoon that the ministry would be submitting three proposals to MEPA on the building of a new road at Ghadira.
Speaking at a press conference this afternoon, he said the first option would see the new road start from behind the Danish Village on an area of land which was already disturbed.
The second option would widen an existing road further inland while the third would be a tunnel, which was originally suggested in 2004.
During the press conference, environmental consultant Adrian Mallia insisted that the existing road needed to be removed because it was acting as a barrier which was preventing the replenishment of Ghadira beach.
Dr Gatt said the whole process would be subject to an environment impact assessment and the governemnt would be prepared to withdraw the project if it was seen as harming the environment. The ultimate aim, he stressed, was to save the beach.
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S Sciberras
Dec 12th 2008, 08:04
I swim at Ghadira regularly and the only traffic problem there is parking. My suggestion is simply to excavate the existing parking beside the Mellieha bay hotel and build a multi storey carpark. There is also need of a roundabout to faciltate the traffic flow in and out the hotel/carpark. The bolders from the excavation can be used to build mini breakwaters which could stop the implied sand erosion from existing development in the first bay. The sand that flies in the road should be collected regularly and put back on the beach. If the Ministry wants to build a tunnel it should build one under Mistra. That would be a great improvement to Tent network
J. Borg
Dec 11th 2008, 20:31
It is in instances like these that one can evaluate the worth of Alternattiva in a coalition government.
Would the PN or any of its ministers conduct such double talk, or even dare present something without ensuring that there is complete transperancy and good faith?
Why complain about arrogance when such arrogant chaps can have their bombastic pretentions so effectively subdued, knowing that they need the continous backing of AD, who never talked nonesense - especially on environmental matters?
It all seems clear now, why the PN prefered to "risk" having Dr. Sant as PM rather than a permanent thorn in the backside of AD - spelling the end of the era wherein government gets effectively dictates (i.e. the party's & its financial supporters' interest), and runs roughshod over the concerns/suggestions/accusations of the general public and credible NGOs.
Marcel Dingli
Dec 11th 2008, 19:26
We have enough roads and many of them in a bad state. The existing roads should be done first. I will mention three as an example : from Lija to Mosta, from Targa Gap to BUrmarrad and from Gudja Airport to Zurrieq.
M.Buhagiar
Dec 11th 2008, 19:09
Joseph Muscat and the PL have already proposed the best option but NO for this ARROGANT Minister no one is right except him and the bunch of Yes man he has surrounding him !!
What a SORRY state we are in !!!
Karl Borg Bartolo
Dec 11th 2008, 19:03
But how can the Prime Minister allow this Minister to act in this way? This is not a matter of the public opinion being against what the government is proposing. Environmental NGO's like Birdlife, Nature Trust, and others areall ourt against such project for obvious reasons.
How can we believe the prsent government's committment towards the environment? Dr Gonzi made an emphasis on working together before the last general election. The Flimkien Kollox Possibli slogan already lost it's value.
God forbids MEPA approves such a project. I still believe that common sense will prevail, but the level of arrogance we are seing in untolerable.
michael fenech
Dec 11th 2008, 18:09
@ J. Busuttil
Please Mr. Busuttil. don't even put GonziPN and Austin Gatt on the same page with President elect Barak Obama.
Paul Caruana
Dec 11th 2008, 18:09
It is really most unfortunate that the Ministry persists in coming up with these 'options' of questionable value, when, as "The Times" has already pointed out, there already is the original, EU approved, 2005 Ten-T project just ready to be implemented!
As others have pointed out, if beach erosion is such a problem, it should not be impossible to pump sand back to the beach from the bay at periodic intervals.
J Busuttil
Dec 11th 2008, 17:27
I saw and heard the Minister's interview and the Government heeded the NGO's appeals in presenting 3 proposals. We must not forget what Alfred Sant has said some time ago that where national projects are proposed MEPA will be excluded. But thank God Sant and Labour were defeated in the last general election. May I remind the one who mentioned the tariffs that building roads is an investment in this time of GLOBAL econic dounturn, That is what is going to do President elect Barak Obama.
J. Borg
Dec 11th 2008, 17:21
When Austin Gatt and/or Adrian Mallia are ready to assume PERSONAL liability over the damage that the road will inflict, rather than possibly 'topping up' the beach with sand on a periodical (i.e. every decade) - then I can possibly consider that their action may be motivated by genuine interest.
Until then, and considering that none of them has ever lifted a finger about the fish farms operating and irremediably polluting the same bay - I do not trust neither GonziPN and much less Austin Gatt!
NGO's pls pull up your sleeves ....for our environment long-term benefit...thanks in advance.
I Abela
Dec 11th 2008, 17:09
@ Mario Mifsud - No there aren't. If there were they would have been published to calm down the controversy. Xtahseb?
mario mifsud
Dec 11th 2008, 16:40
I ask
Are there any studies to sustain that the "existing road need to be removed because it is acting as a barrier which is preventing the replenishment of Ghadira beach"?
ARE THERE SUCH STUDIES TO BACK UP THIS STATEMENT?
SimonCassar
Dec 11th 2008, 16:38
A tunnel would be nice. Why spoil this area with a road or even worse a bridge that can be seen from far away.
Hide the road. There are plenty of other roads elsewhere to see!
J.Borg
Dec 11th 2008, 16:30
why not hold the impact assessment before submitting proposals.......
ther goes minister Gatt again steam rolling over every NGO and anyone against the project.
we want the scientific test published please.
Alfred Bugeja
Dec 11th 2008, 16:27
I still think there's something fishy going on... Dr Gatt is basing his case on the fact that the beach is not being replenished - granted. Yet to solve this environmental concern we shall disrupt other sensitive areas such as Foresta 2000 zones??
If the problem is just sand, why don't we get some from Jordan?
C. Boutelle
Dec 11th 2008, 16:27
How about an elevated stretch.
Also from St Paul's bay bypass to Mellieha, over the beatiful Mizieb valley.
g.c.Forte
Dec 11th 2008, 16:23
The fourth proposal........A bridge....................the sixth and the best one is ......leave everything as it is for now (even the Valletta project ) and concentrate on how you are going to solve the BIG problem of the tariffs. What you are trying to do is to deviate our minds on something else, we know your tactics. Before doing anything else call the unions again and on the table solve this problem, which is creating a BIG headache to all the Maltese citizens,