Environmental organisations are appealing to Mepa against the granting of a permit for a supermarket on virgin land in a valley where runoff water from more than a quarter of Gozo collected.
The NGOs Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Ramblers Association of Malta, Din l-Art Ħelwa, Friends of the Earth, Malta Organic Agriculture Movement, NatureTrust and the Gozo University Group said they were concerned about the number of questionable recommendations for approval of applications being issued by the Mepa Major Projects Unit.
The Xewkija supermarket application, they said, was on land which was right next to an ECO-Gozo scheduled water conservation site.
"Another case of bad planning evidenced in the local plans when this valley should have been spared from further construction and yet again Mepa's Environment Directorate has approved a damaging project. The endless talk of the urgency to implement water conservation measures becomes futile if Mepa then approves more building in our water-valleys."
The NGOs said that this site, between Mgarr Road and St Leonard Street, was unsuitable for a large supermarket. Due to the project's tight layout, trailers entering or exiting the supermarket would need to manoeuvre several times into oncoming traffic – blocking traffic and increasing the risk of accidents.
"This application has been recommended for approval notwithstanding the fact that a professional traffic impact assessment has not been carried out. It is unacceptable to approve such a permit in principle and ask for such studies later, as has been known to happen," the NGOs said.
They said that locating a mega-supermarket in an area which could only be reached by car would significantly increase traffic and car dependency, contributing to pollution and further undermine public health. This would create major problems for those who did not drive, such as the elderly, who would face considerable difficulties to purchase their daily needs once small local outlets closed down.
In a small island context and particularly a case like this where two supermarkets have applied to open within 50 metres of each other, the Interim Retail Planning Guidelines of 2004 required a retail study to plan the best possible options before deciding the application.
An Interim Retail Plan was essential to ensure that the fabric of village life was not further eroded since local shops unable to face the competition would invariably shut down, as had already happened in various localities in Malta.
The NGOs urged the Mepa Environment and Planning Committee to bear in mind that the National Environment Policy and SPED were calling for the use of vacant facilities before permits were granted for the construction of more structures.
The MEPA Major Project Unit's repeated approval of applications which violated Mepa regulations and policies begged the question of whether it had become a mere rubber-stamping office for major developers' projects.
"In the light of the main MEPA board's recent enlightened decisions, it is of great concern that this important Mepa department is betraying the spirit of Mepa reform," the NGOs said.