Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1149911
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 31 JULY 2019 KURT SANSONE GĦADIRA'S kiosk opera- tors will be meeting the Malta Tourism Authority shortly as the government plans to re- dimension the umbrella con- cessions on the popular sandy beach. The operators were given a 15-year concession ahead of the 2013 election to be able to put out sunbeds and umbrel- las in designated areas on the beach. But now, the Tourism Min- istry wants to reclaim more space for the public on what is Malta's largest sandy beach. "On a beach that every year grows smaller, the concessions are too big and this is why Konrad Mizzi has directed the MTA to meet with the Għadira kiosk operators to identify a way forward," a spokesperson for the Tourism Ministry said. Studies have shown that since the 1960s the shoreline at Għadira has withdrawn by some 25 metres through ero- sion and the inability of the sand dunes to regenerate natu- rally as a result of the road that cut the beach off from the hin- terland. The ministry spokesper- son added that the aim of the meeting was to open up new space on the beach to be used for free by the public. Controversy raged on social media this week when Miz- zi reacted to complaints of people being crowded out of Għadira by sunbed operators, pinning the blame on Opposi- tion environment spokesper- son Jason Azzopardi. Mizzi said that just before the 2013 general election, Azzo- pardi, who was then the lands minister, gave Għadira kiosk operators a 15-year conces- sion to lay out umbrellas and deckchairs even when not in demand. Azzopardi hit back insist- ing the minister was trying to shift the blame for the lack of enforcement that allowed op- erators to overstep their con- cessions. In the summer of 2013, after the change in administration, the MTA had taken action to bring order to Għadira but the ministry spokesperson insisted that action back then was to remove an unruly operator and withdraw his license. "This summer, MTA officials carried out multiple checks on the concessions at Għadira and found them to be in line with the conditions stipulated in their concession agreements," the spokesperson said. One of the conditions im- posed on operators is that their umbrellas have to be set back by three metres from the shoreline. However, with the sandy beach losing out to nature, government believes the con- cessions granted some years back may have to be reviewed. As nature claims Ghadira beach, sunbed concessions may be too big Since the 1960s the shoreline at Ghadira has withdrawn by some 25 metres