The decision on the fate of trees in the Gozo capital’s main square was postponed yesterday, a move that disappointed environmentalists who hoped common sense would prevail.
The Environment and Planning Review Tribunal failed to take a decision on the grounds that the local council had said it wanted to make further submissions. But the council did not as it already made its final submissions during the last hearing of the case.
The council is claiming the trees’ roots at Victoria’s Pjazza Indipendenza, known as it-Tokk, were causing harm to the archaeological remains beneath the square and damaging houses nine metres away.
The decision to postpone came as a surprise since the local council had been pressing for a final judgment as the square’s renovation was being financed through EU funds.
Over 100 people last month signed a petition calling on Gozo Minister Anton Refalo and shadow minister Chris Said to help stop the embellishment works.
Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar said it was disappointed the Appeals Tribunal did not decide the case despite having expert reports in hand showing that uprooting the trees would do more harm to the archaeology beneath the square.
“It is regrettable that the Victoria local council does not appreciate the importance of trees in urban areas that are subject to air pollution due to the amount of traffic constantly passing through the heart of the town,” Astrid Vella from FAA said, pointing out that trees were the only means of reducing this pollution.
FAA submitted two reports to the tribunal, both saying that uprooting risked causing more damage to the archaeological remains. The reports were drawn up by archaeologist Reuben Grima and former assistant director of Mepa’s environment protection directorate Alfred Baldacchino.
Mr Baldacchino confirmed the trees were protected because they were more than half a century old.
FAA had filed a prohibitory injunction against Mepa, which confirmed it had no intention of allowing the uprooting of the trees.
A permit granted by Mepa in 2013 for embellishment works on the square in the Urban Conservation Area only permitted sensitive pruning of the protected trees. Despite the Mepa ruling, the council started uprooting the trees at It-Tokk last year, claiming it was appealing this condition.
FAA highlighted the damage already done to the roots of these trees as works on the square progressed.
Ms Vella asked: “Is the local council more intent on destroying the trees to accommodate certain cafes rather than preserving the health of residents and the overall economy of the area?”
It is suspected the cafes may be lobbying for the trees’ removal to enable the placing of more tables and chairs in the square. Yet, the trees at it-Tokk are also sought after by tourists as they offer much-needed respite from the blazing heat in the summer months.