Town boundaries becoming blurred

The insidious and rapacious spread of urbanisation on our islands has resulted in the defining boundaries between adjacent settlements becoming somewhat blurred, with towns merging into one ugly sprawl of construction.

This has happened in the case of most settlements lying between Marsa and Fgura in one direction, and from Marsa to Mosta in the other.

The introduction of local councils may have reinforced the distinctive regional identity of some of settlements through the proliferation of regional symbolism, such as the town’s own coat-of-arms, motto, and so on.

But were it not for the ‘welcome’ messages on the signs at strategic points where jurisdiction passes from one local council to another, you would hardly notice you are driving to a different town when crossing from, say, Ħamrun to St Venera, or from Paola to Fgura or to Tarxien.

The need to avoid a mesh of identities and encroachment onto buffer zones separating settlements from each other has been acknowledged even within our local plans. Such zones are defined as “strategic open gaps”, and priority areas requiring substantial protection.

The South Malta Local Plan states that “these locations are visually important, being the first step outside urban areas offering a brief respite from the monotone visuals of heavily urbanised landscapes. It is important that settlements retain their distinctive identity with countryside around them.

“Strategic open gaps are protected for the following purposes: (i) to check unrestricted urban sprawl and coalescence; (ii) to safeguard the countryside from urban encroachments, and (iii) to preserve the setting, townscape identity and character of towns and villages and prevent them from merging into one another.”

The same local plan further acknowledged that, out of all the geographical area covered by the plan, 33 per cent comprises residential area, a density considerably that is higher than that in the rest of Malta. For this reason, the need to preserve the open gaps in this part of the island is even more important and sorely-felt.

A pending planning application – PA 03867/10 – calls for outline development permission for a hotel along Aviation Road in Luqa, within the sliver of agricultural land separating the villages of Gudja and Luqa, and within a stone’s throw away from land administered by the Armed Forces of Malta and airport-related facilities.

According to Luqa policy paper LU 1 of the South Malta Local Plan, this land is designated as a Strategic Open Gap (SMCO 10), besides being an Outside Development Zone.

One hopes that this and similar applications are turned down by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority so as to prevent further urban sprawl.

More ambitious class action

Class action is a brilliant American practice that is slowly making its way to European shores. News that the government is contemplating introducing class action legislation next year is heartening indeed.

In law, a class action or a representative action is a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court, and/or in which a class of defendants is being sued.

However, the planned legislation extends only to consumer affairs – i.e. protecting consumer rights from being trampled upon by retailers. It effectively pre-empts the European Commission, which is contemplating a directive on similar lines.

In fact, under the proposal presented by the EU Commission earlier this year, consumers who suffer at the hands of companies that fix prices or abuse their dominant market position could soon find it easier to launch class action lawsuits for damages.

The government should be more enterprising and propose the adoption of class action even on environmental issues. Citizen groups and non-governmental organisations should be granted legal standing so as to be able to seek legal redress in court against government or any other entity for environmental misdemeanours.

Legal standing, or locus standi, is already granted to environmental NGOs in a number of European countries, including Austria, Hungary, Portugal and Denmark.

For example, the first time an environmental NGO tried to bring a case to court in Denmark was in 1994, when the Danish Ornithological Society took legal action against the Ministry of Transport.

It was the first time an environmental organisation was found to have a right to action without having to show actual damage to its members’ economic interests.

In the absence of locus standi, the only hope for redress for Maltese citizens and NGOs has so far been the petitions committee of the European Parliament.

There are arguments against the introduction of such legislation. Some say class action could easily be abused, and that it could swamp our already overloaded courts.

These arguments could be countered through a number of provisions, namely that legal standing should only be granted to those groups and NGOs that can prove they have a legal interest in a particular case, and that at least a certain percentage (say, one per cent) of signatures of the total population, or a significant number of (say, 4,000) signatures would be needed to launch such action.

Another welcome development would be to offer free legal aid to citizen groups and NGOs if they can convincingly demonstrate that they have no funds to cover legal costs. Such aid would be funded by the much-touted (but as yet elusive) Environmental Fund, which is, in turn, financed by planning gains, fines, and so on.

The setting up of such a fund is called for in the Environmental Liability Directive, but has been conspicuous by its absence. The Danish system provides legal aid in non-business matters, and it is also possible to obtain a waiver of court fees if a party can prove it has only modest means. About 69 per cent of the Danish population falls under this category.

With the help of Notary Robert Aquilina, I had proposed the introduction of such a measure during the campaign for the European Parliament elections almost two years ago. Only time will tell whether this proposal will eventually find fertile ground, like the Whistleblower and party financing legislation.

Aspirations for 2011

As 2010 draws to a close and 2011 appears on the horizon, it is time to state our aspirations for the year ahead.

Two of the most ambitious milestones the administration should set itself for the coming year are the tackling of the Marfa peninsula (better known as Armier) boathouse and party financing sagas through some decisive action.

The government should finally bite the bullet and embark on the demolition of the shanty towns which were allowed to sprout in recent times along Malta’s coastal areas. Only then can it dispel the rampant cynicism (justified or not) that accompanies any green initiative it takes.

My wishful thinking also extends to Ħondoq ir-Rummien, Ta’ Ċenċ, Dwejra and Comino, which should not be spoilt any further in 2011, but preserved for posterity once and for all.

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