Alternattiva Demokratika and Din l-Art Ħelwa have criticised the Government’s hotel height relaxation policy and architects and civil engineers are calling for more studies.
The tourism industry has a substantial impact on the consumption of water and energy
AD said the policy needs to be considered in more depth and acting chairman Carmel Cacopardo said: “It is not correct to engage in piecemeal amendments of land use policy.
“It is also necessary to consider the impact this proposal will have on the resources consumed by the tourism industry.
“The tourism industry has a substantial impact on the consumption of water and energy, which should be adequately measured in order to ascertain the sustainability or otherwise of the industry.”
The Chamber of Architects and Civil Engineers feels the new policy should be studied further to determine its effect on the built environment.
In a statement, the chamber said it advocated proper impact analysis of the built environment in the applicability of the policy to achieve a more sustainable environment and a better quality of life in the long term.
The Government has announced a revised policy allowing hotels in tourism zones to build an extra two storeys to increase their bed stock and improve the quality of the product.
The areas identified are Mellieħa, St Paul’s Bay, Buġibba and St Julian’s, Paceville, Sliema, Marsascala, Marsaxlokk and Birżebbuġa.
Gozo is being considered as a tourism area in general and applications will be treated on a case by case basis.
The hotels that apply for extensions under the policy cannot be in Outside Development Zones, Urban Conservation Areas, areas of high archaeological and historical value and residential priority areas.
Mr Cacopardo said the proposal to relax the height of hotels was discriminatory and could lead other sectors to insist that they too should benefit as a result of the said height relaxation.
Din l-Art Ħelwa also criticised the change and expressed disappointment that, following consultation meetings with Mepa in 2012, this policy was revised and approved without the Government having carried out the impact assessment that was recommended at the time.
If such a study has been carried out, Din l-Art Ħelwa is requesting it is published.
The NGO said that, while it appreciates the importance of tourism to the economy and to the provision of employment, the policy does not strive to strike the right balance between the quality of the environment and the generation of revenue.