Works in Mdina ditch

Reference is made to Battle Scene At The Mdina Ditch – Environmentalists Vs Government Over Trees (May 25).

Contrary to the impression which the news item might have conveyed, the Mdina ditch rehabilitation project proposal, which is presently being implemented, evolved from a thorough appraisal of the numerous and significant values that the site imparts. The more obvious values include the historical, architectural, aesthetic and environmental values.

The guiding principle in the rehabilitation proposal included the need to visually relieve the landfront ramparts, thus inducing their proper legibility and relationship to the ditch.

It is pertinent to point out that, from a historic perspective, the need to keep the ditch unencumbered was an important and vital military necessity.

Furthermore, research of rehabilitation interventions within fortification ditches abroad showed that, invariably, these are kept devoid of any visual intrusions which detract from their legibility. Use of turf is also very common. One such example is the ditch of the Hospitalier City of Rhodes, another Mediterranean island. The design proposal drawn up by the Restoration Directorate sought to strike a balance between the historic and environmental values of the site.

No fewer than 260 trees are incorporated in the design, including trees that are being planted in what was previously a barren football ground and tennis courts surrounded by high walls just beneath the main entrance to Mdina.

The Mdina ditch rehabilitation project is just one of several other important initiatives being undertaken by the Restoration Directorate in Mdina.

Last year, the ground consolidation of the area underlying the Vilhena Palace, a project that had been in the waiting for nearly a whole century, was completed. Currently, ground consolidation works are also underway in Magazine Curtain and Despuig Bastion.

These three consolidation projects are co-financed by European Regional Development Funds.