Updated 3pm - Developers apologise
Concerns about construction dust at the Townsquare development site in Sliema continued to roil on Monday, with the developers' lobby saying the project owners have promised to work with them to reduce inconvenience.
A photo of a dust-choked Qui-Si-Sana taken last Saturday prompted anger and consternation among residents there and quickly spread across local social media feeds.
On Monday morning, environmental NGO Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar challenged the Malta Developers Association to "take immediate action" and stop developers of the Townsquare site from filling the area with dust.
The FAA lashed out at the MDA, saying it should come up with realistic solutions "choosing community over cash, people over profit and health over high-rise horrors."
The MDA was quick to react, claiming it had taken "immediate action" by speaking to the developers in question, who, the MDA was at pains to point out, are not members of the association.
Developers had agreed to send the MDA a method statement detailing excavation works at the site and "promised to collaborate" to "lessen the temporary inconvenience, as they have already done."
"MDA does not stop working behind the scenes to ensure that building regulations are observed," the lobby group said, adding that it would never defend construction irregularities.
Last September, developers of the Townsquare site said that contractors would be keeping dust to a minimum by not using pneumatic drills to excavate, with water-spraying equipment and wheel-washing procedures also used to keep dust down.
'We are committed to reducing inconvenience,' developers say
In a statement issued on Monday afternoon, developers said that while they had gone to great lengths to contain dust within the excavation site, windy conditions had complicated matters in recent days.
"We promised from the outset that we are committed to minimising inconvenience and that is a promise we intend to keep," a project spokesman said.
Residents could visit the project office in Tigné Street or call a specially set up helpline on 27896034 or 21331560, the spokesman added.