Environmental NGOs this afternoon presented Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi with a list of 74 proposals for the reform of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA).

Dr Gonzi thanked them for their contribution to the reform and noted that many of their recommendations had also been mentioned by others during the consultation process. This meant they were on the right track.

The NGOs recommended that policies governing development outside the development zones and in other protected areas be strengthened and made legally binding and that MEPA starts pre-screening development applications so that those applications proposing illegal development would not processed.

They also listed methods for improving organisational procedures within the authority, including the strengthening the Environmental Directorate with stronger decision making powers.

The NGOs said the members of MEPA boards including the Development Control Boards and the Planning Appeals Board, should be appointed full-time so as to avoid conflicts of interest; that district management teams should be set up to monitor specific green areas and that Environmental Impact Assessment should be carried out for MEPA and not the developers.

They also insisted that planning procedures should also be improved to ensure that development applications conform to sanitary laws, uphold third-party rights and give more weight to social considerations.

The report makes various recommendations aimed at strengthening public participation in the development planning process. The NGOs were Flimkien Ghal Ambjent Ahjar, Friends of the Earth, the Gaia Foundation, Malta Organic Agriculture Movement, the Ramblers Association, Save Wied Garnaw Action Group and the Light Pollution Awareness Group. Nature Trust and Birdlife also contributed to the document.