A planned road leading to a beach in Xatt L-Aħmar in Għajnsielem would disrupt a natural watercourse and interrupt water flowing to nearby fields, Nature Trust Malta yesterday warned.

“This area features one of the very few watercourses in the Maltese islands where fresh water flows during most of the year, even after several dry months. It is also one of the very few watercourses that flows from north to south on the island of Gozo,” the NGO said.

It added the small beach was already accessible via a concrete road.

The water supply came from the overflow of the nearby large freshwater pond known as L-Għadira tal-Papri.

Both the freshwater pond and the watercourse were ecologically important as they sustained plants, birds and several species of dragonflies.

The watercourse also supplied water to the adjacent fields.