Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1117384
16.05.19 16 PROPERTY A 50,000sq.m site in Ta' Qali which is approximately the size of seven foot- ball pitches, has, over the past three months, been entirely cleared of tons of illegally dumped construction material and an abandoned factory. Following this direct action opera- tion carried out by officers within the Planning Authority's Compliance & En- forcement Directorate, the site will now be given back to the public for recrea- tional purposes as part of a much bigger project, namely, the establishment of the Malta National Park. e operation got underway after the Authority received and investigated various reports that illegal dumping was taking place in this abandoned area in Ta' Qali, at a site which in the past served as an industrial area but today was easily accessible to the public who frequented the area for recreational purposes. From investigations it was found that the area was turned into a dumping site and was posing a significant danger. Initially the direct action consisted in the removal of the dumped material, abandoned heavy machinery and large amounts of precast waste. During the operation the PA estab- lished that the two large abandoned concrete manufacturing plants, also within the same area, were structurally unstable. To eliminate any danger within the site, the 8,100sq.m factory structures were demolished. Following consultation with the Su- perintendence of Culture Heritage a number of World War 2 Nissen huts were retained and are to be kept pro- tected due to their historical impor- tance. Over 1,200 truckloads of dumped ma- terial were removed from the site and transported to a licensed landfill. Inert material was brought in to homogene- ously level the site and leave the area in a safe state for the public. is 50,000sq.m site is being added to other disused and derelict zones around the existing Ta' Qali Park with the pur- pose of considerably increasing the area of the national park. e Malta National Park project will see the current park enlarged to 450,000sq.m by freeing disused and derelict tracts of surrounding land. e upgraded park will include a new, green-roofed building to house the na- tional archives and which will be located close to the current basketball facilities. Nearby, a botanical archive is also be- ing proposed as an educational exten- sion to the research facility. Existing leisure areas shall be retained and have their infrastructure upgrad- ed, while new ones (event spaces, art park, skate garden, playgrounds) will be integrated within the new national park. A number of roads crisscrossing the park will disappear entirely while others will be grass-paved for service vehicles entering the park. e new park will be framed by a rec- ognisable green belt and linked to its surrounding villages by means of dedi- cated pedestrian and cycling lanes. A drastic reduction of tarmacked sur- faces and vehicles accessing the green zones is being proposed, with a num- ber of new facilities which will help enlarge the recreation network already in place. As a result, the homogenisation of all the various sites and elimination of abandoned areas will make the park feel safer to families and easier to navigate within. PA's three-month direct action in Ta' Qali makes way for new public recreational area