Smoke signals coming from Marsa

John Evelyn’s Fumifugium is one of the earliest texts on air pollution. Published in 1661 and dedicated to King Charles II, Evelyn’s work describes the effect of smoke over London at the time and proposes “remedies” to deal with the situation.

... in 2012, Marsa B remains an indispensable component to Malta’s power generation industry...- Alan Pulis

One historical argument on this short but remarkable pamphlet goes that Evelyn had intended it far beyond a discussion about smoke and sulphur or simply voicing his concern about what was basically a pollution issue. Evelyn’s work carries subtle political underpinnings, as if the obnoxious smoke was a metaphorical representation of the social disorder and upheaval in England in the times of Oliver Cromwell.

The Marsa power station exhaust plume has dominated the politics of Malta’s air for many years. To this very day, residents in the inner harbour area consider it as practically all that matters on air quality. Reality is, however, far more complicated.

There was once the incinerator at St Luke’s Hospital. The Magħtab waste tip remains another major source of dust and other pollutants that deteriorate the quality of our environment, and not just air, And radical measures may have to be taken to address the issue of human health problems associated with traffic emissions on our roads. Our islands are also under the influence of Etna’s volcanic plume.

The history of the Marsa power station dates back to the immediate post-war era with Malta’s claim for Marshall Aid. Funds were sought to build a power plant to replace the one at Lascaris Wharf.

The 1950s saw a dramatic overhaul of what was until then the first rudimentary set-up of Malta’s power generation sector, with the excavation of Jesuits’ Hill in Marsa to install the underground station until, eventually (and mostly due to lack of space), the first elements of the Marsa B plant we are familiar with today came into place.

Marsa B was finally inaugurated in 1966 and it was only in September 1994 that the underground station was closed down at a time when operations had already commenced at Delimara.

Enemalta operations shifted from coal to oil in 1995. Marsa, Ħamrun and many residents elsewhere will speak volumes about the thick black smoke and all the nuisances from coal-fired Marsa B. Among heated controversy and sulphurous accusations, 1987 brought about the construction of the heavy oil-fired power station at Delimara, sending a clear message that the new plant would sooner or later replace Marsa B as was in the best interest of residents in harbour areas.

Talking is cheap, people follow like sheep: in 2012, Marsa B remains an indispensable component to Malta’s power generation industry, providing us with almost half our daily power generation needs.

It will all change when major projects that include the activation of the BWSC Delimara power station extension and, perhaps, most of all with respect to Marsa B, the installation of an electric cable interconnector with Sicily come into being. The latter event should signal the long-awaited decommissioning of Marsa B. But nothing is expected to materialise until late 2013 if not 2014.

Long gone are the days of the dust from Menqa with black heaps of coal exposed to sun, wind and rain. The older generation will recall the belching plumes from Marsa B that looked far more ominous in the times of coal than with an oil-fired plant, which does not mean, however, that the shift to heavy oil has rendered Marsa B a safer place.

More than 10 years have elapsed since the publication of the Stacey Report on black dust in 2000, a decade in the politics of Malta’s air that culminated in yet another study by scientists from the University of Malta that further points towards Marsa B as the likely source of black dust manifestations.

What shall the pressing global time frames to achieve drastic greenhouse gas emissions cuts by not later than 2030 or 2050 trigger? Is this the age that marks the onset of an era of green energy and renewable, perhaps coupled to a nuclear renaissance that has been only temporarily put on halt in the aftermath of Fukushima?

What about the scenario about a shift on “clean” coal with the worldwide proliferation of carbon capture and storage technology?

But this is completely irrelevant for residents in the shadows of Marsa B chimney stacks. The 20,000 operating hours originally allocated to the plant under EU law have practically expired. Marsa B operations may be unethical or contentious but the plant’s original strategic role virtually remains intact.

A Eurobarometer survey published in 2011 reveals that air pollution ranks first as the most worrying environmental issue for 54 per cent of Maltese respondents, followed by growing waste (43 per cent) and climate change (42 per cent).

The Marsa fumifugium may be thick but the writing is clear on the wall.

sapulis@gmail.com

The author specialises in environmental management.