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MALTATODAY 7 November 2021

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4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 NOVEMBER 2021 NEWS NICOLE MEILAK THE architect responsible for excavation works at Chadwick Lakes was the same architect who was declared guilty of caus- ing the death of Miriam Pace. Roderick Camilleri, the 37-year-old architect, drew up the plans to rehabilitate Chad- wick Lakes on behalf of the En- ergy & Water Agency (EWA). But last week, a road running alongside the reservoirs at Chad- wick Lakes collapsed after a peri- od of heavy rainfall. The collapse happened near the dam under Mtarfa, specif- ically by the retaining wall of the catchment area behind the dam. The retaining wall is made up of a masonry wall at the base and a concrete wall on the upper reaches. According to the EWA, prelim- inary investigations on site indi- cate that the collapse happened in the upper sections of the ex- posed concrete wall, rather than the masonry wall. A soil buttress was retained at the base of the catchment to help give addition- al support to the masonry wall. In 2019, geologist Peter Gatt warned of instability in the clay channel walls of the lake due to the vertical walls cut into the clay sediments around the lake. He said that flooding from ear- ly rains would trigger instability in the clay channel walls, forc- ing the rocks and sediment to slide down and create a concave slump in the side. His prediction was proven to be correct. According to the Chadwick Lakes Trail, the affected area holds a large volume of water due to the nearby dam structure. The 'lake' water led to an inward pressure on the base of the valley walls, while the rainwater accu- mulating in the soil placed an outward pressure on the upper parts of the same wall. With heavy rainfall experi- enced in the days prior, the two opposing forces led to a rota- tional slump. Had the walls been cut at an angle, or with added buttressing material towards the bottom of the retaining wall, the collapse might have been avoid- ed. A technical investigation is now underway to better de- termine the causes leading to the collapse. According to the EWA, first appraisals indicated that damage was only sustained in the concrete structure of the wall, which at the time would have been under increased pres- sure to the water-logged soil. Restoration Chadwick Lakes underwent restoration in 2019 to protect ecologically sensitive areas. €5 million was invested into the project, €4.3 million of which was funded by the EU. The project was two-fold: the works reinstated the storage capacity of existing dams while restoring the valley's ecology. A lot of the work also focused on creating a water catchment for the storage of water behind the valley's dams. A restoration of Chadwick Lakes was long-overdue. The environmental report carried out in 2018 found that the valley was in a deplorable state, with reduced surface water retention capacity and a proliferation of invasive and non-native plant species. Negligence charges Last July, Roderick Camill- eri was one of two architects charged with negligently caus- ing Miriam Pace's death in 2020. Pace died in the rubble of her home, which collapsed follow- ing works on a construction site next door. The court declared that the two architects "betrayed their oath of appointment as archi- tects". Camilleri alone was found guilty of making a false declara- tion to the authorities after sign- ing the condition reports in the documentation submitted to the authorities for the clearance on works to start. Between negligence and mak- ing false declarations, the court sentenced Camilleri to 480 hours of community service and a €10,000 fine. The separate magisterial in- quiry into the death of Miriam Pace highlighted "clear negli- gence" on Camilleri's part. The magistrate, Claire Stafrace Zammit, said that investigations showed clear negligence, a lack of adherence to regulation, and a lack of skill by the people re- sponsible for the project. Despite the charges, Roder- ick Camilleri remains a warrant holder. His right to practice as a perit remained unaltered follow- ing the Court's decision not to impinge upon his warrant. However, the Kamra tal-Periti is still investigating the matter. In comments to MaltaToday, the Kamra complained about a lack of cooperation from the Attorney General's office. It said that several requests were sub- mitted to the Attorney General for access to the procès-verbal and other evidence. However, these requests were dismissed. "This lack of cooperation is un- necessarily delaying the Kamra's investigation," President Andre Pizzuto said. Geological input needed Speaking to MaltaToday, Peter Gatt said that more geological input is needed when drafting and approving planning pro- jects. "It is time to have a National Geological Service. Malta re- mains the only EU country with- out a geological service, and this places the country at a disadvan- tage," he said. For Gatt, the excavations left the retaining wall vulnerable to failure. Vertical cuts into the clay would have also left the clay unstable. "Both banks would become un- stable when saturated with wa- ter, as happened a few days ago," he said. However, the Kamra tal-Peri- ti insisted that road collapse was an issue of civil engineer- ing rather than geology. Pizzuto remarked that only a civil engi- neer could determine whether a civil engineering intervention is adequate or otherwise, be it an embankment, foundation, or geotechnical engineering inter- vention. "What the country needs is greater investment in specialisa- tions within the civil engineering side of our profession," Pizzuto said. "This is an area the Kamra is working strongly in, and will be in a position to elaborate fur- ther in the coming months." nmeilak@mediatoday.com.mt Chadwick Lakes architect was charged over Miriam Pace's death The collapse happened towards the left of the dam pictured above. Excavations during the regeneration project may have weakened the retaining wall, despite the addition of a soil buttress by the masonry wall

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