St Julians bays at risk

The beautiful St Julians and Balluta bays risk becoming a hazard for swimmers because of the numerous boats that have been berthing there over the past few weeks, especially at the weekends.

Only last Sunday morning a man was hit on the head by a boat being driven by the owner’s son with the owner frantically trying to push away the stricken man before his boat could roll over him and risk hitting him with the propeller.

The owners of these boats prefer to berth their boats very near to shore, especially in Balluta Bay, and besides the above-mentioned hazard, the area is unfortunately being affected by pollution from the engines of these numerous vessels, most of them highly powered.

Apart from that I wonder whether the owners have a holding tank and if so, if they are making proper use of it.

Lately I was discussing with friends how clear the sea water in this area has become and what a pleasure it was to have a dip in such healthy surroundings. This, however, risks being ruined if the authorities do not clamp down on the abusers.