Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1111510
4 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 1 MAY 2019 Call for moratorium on fuel station decisions until new policy is approved JAMES DEBONO THE activists who staged a mo- ment-defining occupation of the Planning Authority's driveway entrance in protest at its fuel sta- tions want the government to postpone any decision on pend- ing applications until its revised rules are approved. The revised version of the 2015 fuel stations rules, which contro- versially pave the way for mega- stations outside development zones, was issued for public con- sultation on Monday. The new policy stipulates that even pending applications, of which there are 14, should be ap- proved under the new restrictive policy, which effectively bans the construction of petrol stations on agricultural land and only permits 1,000 sq.m fuel stations on committed land that is out- side development zones but not used for agriculture. This effectively overrules all pending applications, which mostly involve agricultural land and site areas of 3,000 sq.m. "There is no sense in propos- ing a change while allowing ap- plications already submitted to continue being decided on ac- cording to the old policy. It is also worth noting that it may take many, many months before any changes are effected. There- fore, Moviment Graffitti calls on the PA to halt any and all appli- cations for fuel service stations until the proposed policy comes into effect," spokesperson Andre Callus said. According to law, the draft pol- icy will have to be issued for pub- lic consultation for a period of six weeks. If, following the public consultation, the PA decides to make new changes to the policy, it will have to hold another round of public consultation of another six weeks. Subsequently, the policy will have to be discussed in parlia- ment's standing committee on the environment and finally submitted for the approval of the minister. Short of a mora- torium on decisions related to pending applications until the new policy comes in place, the PA board may still end up ap- proving fuel stations under the 2015 policy. Graffitti welcomed various aspects of the long-awaited re- view of the Fuel Service Station Policy. "We are satisfied that the pressure applied through sev- eral direct actions, supported by many other NGOs and echoed by much of the public, has had its desired effect. This shows that when people band together, positive change can be achieved," Callus said. Moviment Graffitti is cautious- ly optimistic about the changes proposed, nonetheless noting several points of concern which the organisation shall be raising in its feedback to the Planning Authority (PA) during the public consultation period. It said the draft revised policy represents several improvements over the current one and that the options for take up of ODZ land are significantly more lim- ited. "However, some points are of concern. The proposed policy requires no limit on size and no minimum distance between fuel stations, including those in Areas of Containment. It is to be high- lighted that Areas of Contain- ment are ODZ sites. This may open the door to massive com- plexes of commercial services for cars, using the excuse of dispens- ing fuel to justify the take up of large parcels of land." Moviment Graffitti maintained that fuel stations should be lim- ited in size, with other com- mercial activities related to car servicing operating under a com- mercial policy. The current and proposed policies both allow this abuse. The proposed policy allows for the upgrading of facilities for ancillary services. This seems to open the door for fuel stations to expand for reasons unrelated to the fuel dispensing function, again providing a loophole that can be exploited. Moreover, the fact that ODZ land remains available for de- velopment, notwithstanding the increased constraints in that re- gard, continues to devalue the ODZ classification. Moviment Graffitti is calling on the public to submit their thoughts to the PA throughout the consultation period to close potential loopholes and stop all pending applications until the new policy comes into effect. De- tails on this will be provided on our social media in the coming days. Moviment Graffitti calls on Planning Authority to postpone fuel station decisions until new policy is approved Moviment Graffitti protests the fuel stations policy rules outside the Planning Authority CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The ministry did not indicate a timeframe for the presentation of a law to set up this new structure. The construction sector came under the spotlight again last week when part of an apartment block in Guarda- mangia collapsed, leaving four fami- lies homeless. The block was situated next to a construction site but according to the authorities the contractor had ob- served all rules. A magisterial inquiry is ongoing. In the wake of the incident, the Chamber of Architects lamented the fragmented enforcement on the con- struction industry and called on the government to update the regulations. It described the rules governing the building industry as inadequate, es- pecially at a time when the sector was booming and multiple construction sites were sprouting up in all locali- ties. The Chamber warned that the rate of construction accidents in Malta "whether resulting in damage to neighbouring properties, injury or even death is unacceptable." During the launch of the White Pa- per, Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg said the new authority would act as a single port of call for citizens and de- velopers. He acknowledged that the laws regu- lating the sector were antiquated and needed urgent revision. The proposal was for the new Build- ing and Construction Authority to absorb the work done by the Build- ing Industry Consultative Council (BICC), the Building Regulation Of- fice (BRO), the Building Regulation Board (BRB) and the Masons Board. The public consultation on the pro- posal closed on 15 October. ksansone@mediatoday.com.mt YANNICK PACE A substantial amount of fish, including tuna, have been confiscated by local au- thorities from the Ta' Maġġi industrial estate in Żabbar. In a statement on Tuesday evening, the parliamentary secretariat for fisher- ies said that "substantial numbers of fish and tuna were confiscated" from the in- dustrial zone. The fish, the value of which could reach "up to thousands of Euro on the market" the department said, lacked traceability and included false state- ments, in addition to being stored in a room that is not in line with the neces- sary legal standards. The secretariat said that the operation had been coordinated by the fisheries department, an executed by the Directo- rate for Veterinary Regulations and the Directorate for Environmental Health. The secretariat said that the fish had been confiscated, with investigations ex- pected to "continue in the coming days". Earlier this year, Malta's tuna industry was thrust into the limelight after fish- eries director Andreina Fenech Farrugia was suspended by Environment Min- ister Jose Herrera after leaked phone intercepts by Spanish investigative au- thorities showed how she had asked a major Spanish tuna operator - José Fuentes García - for payment to allow him to introduce more bluefin tuna in the market than was allowed. Parliamentary Secretary Clint Camill- eri had pledged that a review of the de- partment would be undertaken in order to address any shortcomings. Two separate magisterial inquiries are currently investigating irregularities within the industry. ypace@mediatoday.com.mt 'Thousands' worth in fish seized from Zabbar industrial estate No timeframe set as yet for introducing law