Wied Għomor could be protected from development

Updated 12pm - Added FAA reaction

Wied Għomor, a green lung between Swieqi and San Ġwann, could be considered public domain, safeguarding it from future development, thanks to a proposal by Environment Minister José Herrera.

Dr Herrera yesterday proposed that the valley, along with Indawar Nature Park near Żonqor Point, should be included in the list of sites protected under the Public Domain Act.

The law, introduced last year, allows citizens and NGOs to recommend sites to be listed as public domain, guaranteeing public access and limiting new development.

READ: Valley under siege by a barrage of development

The minister’s proposals will join 22 others submitted by environmental groups Friends of the Earth and Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar – including Manoel Island, Ħondoq ir-Rummien, Ta’ Ċenċ and Comino – all of which will be vetted by the Planning Authority before being debated in Parliament.

The i reported last month that Wied Għomor, already a scheduled area of ecological and scientific importance, was under siege from an unprecedented barrage of applications for new developments, stretching the local council to its limits in an attempt to preserve the valley.

At least seven applications in the ODZ area, mostly residential, have been decided by the PA in the last year alone, with two others withdrawn by applicants after negative feedback from the regulator.

The Swieqi council is currently embroiled in five separate appeals, including on the major proposal of a 133-room elderly residence in an existing quarry, which was unanimously rejected by the PA board in May amidst a public outcry.

A major ecotourism development on the site of a disused cow farm is also expected to be proposed, shortly after a similar proposal was withdrawn last year amid public outrage.

Announcing his public domain proposals yesterday, Dr Herrera described the law as a “landmark”, which would ensure better environmental protection.

He said the ministry was also studying the possibility of delineating certain old countryside passageways that could be similarly declared, ensuring better access to the public.

In a statement, environmental NGO Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar welcomed the minister's initiative and called on the government to reform planning laws to ensure the Environment Resource Authority had a stronger voice in ruling on ODZ applications.

"As things stand, the Planning Authority is overruling most of the ERA’s objections against applications for developments in ODZ. This makes a mockery of the claim that the MEPA demerger would serve to strengthen nature protection."

Other NGO site proposals:

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