Smoke still belches out of the burnt shed at the Marsascala recycling plant because Wasteserv does not yet have the court’s go-ahead to strip it down.

The waste agency’s CEO, Tonio Montebello, said the structure was too dangerous for firefighters to enter and douse the bales of waste inside.

“The operation has to be conducted from the outside, which is not the most efficient of ways since the waste remains compacted and starts smoking again when the water dries up,” he said.

The solution would be to strip open the twisted metal wreck and allow firefighters safe entry to finish off the job.

However, Mr Montebello said Wasteserv was not yet authorised to clean up the area that was engulfed in flames last month since the magisterial inquiry was still under way.

We have to wait for the magistrate’s go-ahead

“We have to wait for the magistrate’s go-ahead before we can move in. Even our insurer’s surveyor is waiting for the inquiry to end before carrying out an assessment of the damage incurred,” Mr Montebello said.

The agency is expecting the magistrate to give the go-ahead sometime next week, which would allow it to get a clearer picture of the damage caused to the shed and equipment inside.

The Sant’Antnin recycling plant went up in flames after bales of separated plastic and paper waste caught fire. The raging fire spread to the main shed that was reduced to a blackened, twisted shell. According to the Civil Protection Department the fire led to temperatures soaring to more than 1,000 degrees Celsius, causing metal objects to burn.

Residents were warned to stay indoors and keep their windows closed.

It took firefighters 24 hours to extinguish the flames and several more hours to cool down the bales of waste on the outside.

Meanwhile, Mr Montebello said the grey bag waste that used to be sorted in the stricken area was being diverted to the Gozo and Magħtab recycling plants.

However, the part of the facility that used to handle the black bag waste was still operational. “Part of the facility where organic waste is extracted from the mixed waste we receive from homes is still functioning, including the machinery that transforms this into compost,” Mr Montebello said.

The Sant’Antnin plant was inaugurated in 2010 after a €27 million modernisation project that replaced a recycling facility already on site.

kurt.sansone@timesofmalta.com