This newspaper first reported the sewage problem at Ras il-Ħobż in Gozo on October 7, 2013.

A murky outflow of what appears to be untreated sewage is still being spotted in a popular Gozitan dive spot almost three years after this newspaper first reported the problem.

Diver Malcolm Grima told the Times of Malta that he was taken aback when he saw a plume of thick waste spewing out of a broken pipe off Ras il-Ħobż in Gozo.

“This is a very popular spot for divers. When I saw this thick dark waste being pumped out at sea, I was shocked. Even from the surface it was clear this was sewage,” Mr Grima said.

Even though the area is well beyond the authorised bathing zone, hordes of divers flock to the sheltered coastal stretch, famed for its three scuttled wrecks and old anchor.

This newspaper first reported on the discharge of waste out at sea in the area in 2013. At that point, avid diver Matthew Montebello had uploaded an underwater video of the effluent to his Facebook account.

The Water Services Corporation reacted with a statement explaining that the outflow was treated, but advised against bathing in the area as it was “not disinfected”.

Divers, however, raised doubts about the discharge, insisting the size and density of the underwater plume fluctuated drastically.

“Sometimes it’s clean and other times it’s murky. The authorities have been sending divers to work on this all summer. It’s quite suspicious,” professional diver Brian Azzopardi said.

When I saw this thick dark waste being pumped out at sea, I was shocked. Even from the surface it was clear this was sewage

A WSC spokesman subsequently told this newspaper that the treatment plant, which is located near the dive spot, would stop all discharges “in the coming years” as part of the national water reuse strategy.

“The strategy includes plans to completely reuse treated water. This means that, eventually, there will be no more discharges from Ras il-Ħobż,” the spokesman said.

However, over the past few months a number of videos of the discharge taken by divers have been uploaded onto social media, complaining about the matter. 

In 2014, a WSC source explained that the outflow had occasionally appeared murkier because large deposits of farming water would overwhelm the filtration process.

“This is occasional, and there isn’t much we can do to stop it. However, I must stress that this falls in line with EU regulations and poses no environmental risk,” the source had said.

The dumping of untreated sewage is prohibited by the EU Urban Waste Water Directive.

In 2011, Malta became one of the first countries to adhere to the directive when it opened three treatment plants.

The WSC has repeatedly insisted that water quality tests on the murky discharge indicated the treated water was of top quality.

The tests were carried out on the water in the treatment facility and not on that discharged from the submerged pipe. The corporation has said that the discharged water often appeared murky because of the depth and mineral properties of the water.