The Water Services Corporation denies that slurry is being disposed in the open sea from Gozo’s only wastewater plant, insisting the material was being treated using recently-installed equipment.

The Times of Malta was alerted a few weeks ago that bowsers laden with slurry were pumping out the waste in a manhole outside the Ras il-Ħobż plant, in the limits of Għajnsielem. 

The ‘practice’, which started towards the turn of the year, had raised questions as the plant was not designed to treat farm waste but domestic sewage. In fact, whenever slurry is illegally dumped into the sewers it clogs the plant, with the result that raw sewage is pumped into the sea. 

In recent years, there have been various incidents whereby Ras il-Ħobż, a popular diving spot close to the iconic Mġarr ix-Xini Bay, was contaminated with sewage.

Watch: Pollution havoc at Gozo diving spot, but WSC says its network is working perfectly

During a recent onsite visit, the Times observed four bowsers discharging farm waste in a manhole outside the plant in the space of about an hour. 

There was little if any supervision by WSC staff during the operation. However, the sea below, where the plant discharges its effluent, looked crystal clear, at least to the naked eye.

When asked about the matter, the corporation said it was fully aware of the situation, insisting that operations were being conducted under its supervision.

“We developed a system that converts a bowser full of slurry to a skip-load of solid waste in about 15 minutes. This also safeguards the plant,” CEO Richard Bilocca said. 

“Since the new equipment has been installed, the plant is producing much less sludge and consuming less power,” he remarked.

He added that the situation in Gozo was very urgent due to the large concentration of farms in relation to the island’s population and, hence, the reason why such equipment had been installed there.

The Times had asked to view the equipment in operation but, instead, it was shown a short video clip, on the grounds there was not enough time to organise a trip. Such visit could be possible in the future, the Times of Malta was told.

If the plant is not closed, it would take weeks to recover until it reaches required parameters

Mr Bilocca recalled that the problem of illegal dumping of farm waste in the sewers had started about 10 years ago when new EU directives introduced limitations on the spreading of manure in fields across the year.

The corporation confirmed that, last year, it had decided to seal a number of manholes in Gozo that were being illegally used by farmers to dump manure, especially cow slurry. Such measure came in the wake of repeated faults caused by abusive practices, which were also having an impact on the production of the so-called new water from the same plant, which is used by farmers for irrigation purposes.

“When there is a fault, often caused by illegal discharges, the only option is to shut down the plant for a few hours to cleanse the system - at the cost of having raw sewage flow straight into the sea,” Mr Bilocca pointed out.

“If the plant is not closed down, it would take weeks to recover until it reaches the required treatment parameters. During such period, farmers would also suffer as they would go for about two weeks without new water until the plant returns to normality,” he continued.

Illegal dumping of slurry in the sewers continues in Malta. 

Given that no equipment similar to the one in Gozo was installed at the three plants in Ta’ Barkat in Xgħajra, which caters for 80 per cent of Malta’s sewage, Iċ-Ċumnija, in Mellieħa, and Sant’Antnin, in Marsascala, which was being upgraded, how was the WSC coping, he was asked.

Mr Bilocca said that, in Malta, other systems were devised “to stabilise the situation” but he pointed out there were plans to install equipment similar to that at Ras il-Ħobż.

What options do Maltese farmers have to dispose of their slurry? The WSC would not delve into the merits of the matter. 

“This sector is managed by the Governance of Agricultural Bio-resources Agency and such questions are better directed to them,” Mr Bilocca said. 

Set up in 2017 through a legal notice published days before the general election, this agency coordinates and implements Malta’s agricultural waste management plan.