The revised fuel stations policy, which will rule out new facilities outside development zones, will not apply to pending applications, environment minister Jose Herrera said on Thursday.

The minister presented the results of a two-month review by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) of the controversial policy, which allows the relocation of fuel stations from urban cores and the development of new stations ODZ.

The proposed revision will limit ODZ development to the upgrading of existing stations, significantly limiting the take-up of rural land. It also reduces the maximum size of new stations by a third, and increases the minimum distance between facilities from 500 metres to 1.5 kilometres, among other limitations.

However, Dr Herrera said the new policy will not apply to applications pending before the Planning Authority, which will continue to be assessed under the existing, more permissive, policy.

At least 14 ODZ applications for new or relocated stations have been submitted or approved since the policy was introduced in 2015, taking up an area of land more than five times the size of the Floriana Granaries. Ten of these are still pending.

When the current policy was introduced in 2015, it applied to both new and pending applications.

While a final decision on the policy’s applicability will be made by the PA executive council – which will also decide whether to accept the ERA recommendations – Dr Herrera said applying the new policy to pending applications would illegally prejudice the applicants, creating legal uncertainty and going against the principle of just expectation.

Asked whether the review was therefore a case of locking the door after the horse had bolted, Dr Herrera said there was no guarantee all the pending applications would be accepted – indeed, one in Luqa hangs in the balance after a tied vote by the PA board last week – and that there would always be a demand to prompt new applications.

Mr Herrera also said the government could not legally impose a moratorium on new applications, despite the risk of a flood of applications being rushed in ahead of the revised policy’s implementation. This outcome, he said, was unlikely due to the complexity of the application process.

The revised policy at a glance

· No new or relocated fuel stations outside development zones

· Fuel stations must be 1.5 kilometres apart (instead of 500 metres)

· Footprint must not exceed 2,000 square metres (instead of 3,000)

· Footprint will now include all landscaping and ancillary facilities

· Ancillary facilities must be related to vehicle maintenance

· Development will no longer be allowed on ODZ sites opposite industrial areas

· Developers will have to pay an “environmental gain” to compensate for environmental impacts

· Height limitation to be set at seven metres