The new planning legislation that will replace Malta’s structure plan will increase the number of loopholes and leave the road wide open for construction to take place in outside development zones, Din l-Art Ħelwa is warning.
The aim of a robust structure plan is to define the use of space and therefore of land for the nation for several years, said the NGO’s president, Simone Mizzi. An honourable government would ensure that it is drafted responsibly, to protect land, which is the country’s most important resource.
However, the opposite was set to take place if the draft Strategic Plan for the Environment and Development (SPED) is approved, she said.
Ms Mizzi explained that the new draft had been written in such a way that projects deemed as unfeasible within urban areas could be built in ODZ areas, where land was cheaper and more accessible, such as in the case of Żonqor Point.
Also of great concern is that projects considered to be of a ‘sustainable’ nature are similarly permitted in ODZ land. The criterion of sustainability is very broad and cannot easily be defined, she said.
Sustainability could be applied to most projects, making it legal for all sorts of construction to take place in ODZ
“Sustainability of development could be applied to most projects, making it legal for all sorts of construction to take place in ODZ, including rural and coastal areas which are so sought after by developers for easy and quick gain.”
The NGO asked for those clauses allowing projects to take place in ODZ, simply because they may be deemed unfeasible in urban zones, to be taken out of the redrafted structure plan.
These loosely applied terms go totally against the spirit of the legislation, which is to give clear, precise and well defined direction to the nation on the use of space over the next decade, Ms Mizzi said.
The words “feasibility” and “sustainability” should be struck , or else clearly defined. To do this, the structure plan should be rewritten as the serious document it was intended to be, including detailed plans and policies for every area of the Maltese islands.
“The Prime Minister promised protection for the environment in the 2013 general election manifesto, yet Żonqor Point is further evidence that shows his intentions are the complete opposite.”
The NGO has proposed a moratorium on all large scale and institutional construction projects till the SPED can be correctly defined.