Wirt Għawdex is greatly disappointed at the way the latest Dwejra environmental damage has been allowed to happen and shares the same concerns about its ongoing preservation as voiced by other organisations, it said in a statement

“We do not disagree with efforts to generate economical activity on the island. However, any such projects should have as a priority the protection of the island’s environmental and historical patrimony,” it said.

Wirt Għawdex said this mishap has made it obvious that there is no specific and clear process of what, when and how such projects are to be managed.

“Nobody appears to have had overall ownership of the activity and it seems that the local council didn’t envisage the potential for harm that this project entailed.”

Dwejra, it said, seems to go from one disaster to another because of lack of vision and it was not enough to say that mistakes were being learned from.

“This incident shows the urgency with which a decision should be made to create a management team to supervise all activity at Dwejra and other such ecological and historical sensitive sites such as the Cittadella, Comino and others.

“These management teams should include the Ministry for Gozo, the Gozo Tourist Association, the local council involved and local non-governmental organisations.