Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1063613
NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 19 DECEMBER 2018 2 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 ERA's environment director Michelle Piccinino still refused to single out a particular zone identified for land rec- lamation insisting that while the entire stretch of southern coastline had to be excluded due to the nature of the terrain, the "whole area be- tween Marsaxlokk and the north of Gozo" is more suitable for land reclamation. But when asked about the sites designated in the map, included in the ERA pres- entation seen by MaltaToday, she pointed out that it is clear that even this area in- cludes sites like the Grand Harbour which although included cannot be reclaimed. "When such an exercise is made, the sites are only indicative. For example al- though the Grand Harbour forms part of the site identified for reclamation, no- body would dream of reclaiming the port which has an intrinsic cultural value. These areas are merely indicative. Even- tually, down the process we may limit these areas further." When asked specifically on the Por- tomaso site which is known to harbour posidonia meadows to the extent that in the 1990s the PA had fined Portomaso's developers Lm50,000 (€120,000) for de- stroying posidonia meadows following excavations for their yacht marina, Pic- cinino insisted on the indicative nature of the map. She also acknowledged that some areas deemed suitable for reclamation may in- clude protected habitats and that these areas need to be further analysed while noting that marine habitats may also experience changes over time. What is sure so far is that the whole stretch of south- ern coastline between Mar- saxlokk and Mellieha has been excluded both because it has a higher ter- rain over the sea level and also be- cause it is richer in marine habitats. Piccinino welcomed the fact that on this occa- sion the starting point for the site selection process was based on environ- mental considerations. "ERA analysed the whole of the Maltese coast to identify those sites which could be suitable for land reclamation. The idea behind these studies was to limit any land reclamation to sites which are acceptable from an environmental point of view". Asked whether there is a risk that land reclamation will fuel a greater demand for construction waste instead of en- couraging reduction and recycling of this waste, Piccinino replied that the creation of construction waste is mostly fuelled by economic factors. "We will be short-sighted if we opt for land reclamation simply to take short cuts or to generate even more waste. But we should look at it as a way of making a better use of the resource we are generat- ing. We should be asking what is the best way to use this resource?" She also refers to the spoilt ground off Xghajra where construction waste has been deposited since colonial times. While noting that ERA already does not permit the indiscriminate dumping of waste in this area, she asks, "Would it not be better to utilise this resource better than simply dumping it in the sea…We should look at land reclamation as an op- portunity?" She also confirmed that quarries which are take the majority of construction waste are nearing exhaustion and there- fore the country has to find ways of ad- dressing this problem. Piccinino did not exclude the use of re- claimed land for real estate development when asked whether land reclamation should be limited to recreational open spaces and the creation of new natural habitats. "Yes there may be zones where nothing but open spaces can be created but defi- nitely there is room for a certain amount of development". Apart from the area between Xghajra and Portomaso, the ERA presentation also identified other areas along the Mal- tese coast for small and medium sized reclamation projects. These include the Mgarr harbour in Gozo which had been identified for a cruise liner terminal, Qa- let Marku in Bahar ic-Caghaq, St Paul's Bay, Marsaxlokk and an area off Xghajra already utilised for the dumping of con- struction waste. ERA director refuses to single out particular zone identified for land reclamation CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Xarabank had 69,361 viewers in October. The X Factor Malta Face- book page lit up with the an- nouncement that it's now the most-watched programme in all Malta and Gozo across all stations and time bands. The only other segment that beats X Factor Malta is the news on TVM with 123,000 tuning in on a Tuesday night, another 114,420 on a Wednes- day night and 109,000 on a Fri- day evening. The BA survey revealed that TVM remains the most popu- lar station on television with 90,656 viewers watched X Factor each Sunday in October CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 "Based on the benchmark there already is in the St George's Bay area – because we need to ensure there is eq- uity across the whole penin- sula – Deloitte used the rate of €1,250 per internal square me- tre," tourism minister Konrad Mizzi told parliament's Na- tional Audit Office Accounts Committee last week, adding that the site had been valued at a total of €121 million. The minister's presentation to the committee sets the stage for a crucial vote to be taken in 2019 that will necessitate a parliamentary resolution for International Hotel Invest- ments to forge ahead with the project. On the basis of Deloitte's cal- culations, Corinthia will pay a compensation of €51.4 million for the wavier of the restric- tion on mixed-used develop- ment, and a €17 million one- time premium. Back in 2015, IHI had signed a memorandum of under- standing with the government for the development of the peninsula into a 6-star luxury development. The group has already met Opposition lead- er Adrian Delia, and a pres- entation will be made to the PN parliamentary group on Waiver of restriction will cost Corinthia