Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1477178
8 NEWS 25.08.2022 A Singapore in the Med George Mangion George Mangion is a senior partner at PKF, an audit and consultancy firm, and has over 25 years' experience in accounting, taxation, financial and consultancy services. His efforts have made PKF instrumental in establishing many companies in Malta and established PKF as a leading professional financial service provider on the Island A n ERA spokesperson was recently quoted commenting unfavoura- bly about spoilt ground off Xgha- jra where construction waste has been de- posited since colonial times. Media reports show how unused quarries which take the majority of construction waste are nearing exhaustion and therefore the country has to find ways of addressing this problem. A major consideration in a latest ERA report was "the avoidance" to landfills of areas claimed to be rich in protected habitats, especially areas which include the priority habitat Posidonia beds. ese are protected under EU law due to their crucial importance as the lungs of the Mediterranean Sea. Labour's manifesto includes a blanket commitment for land reclamation pro- jects, which is deemed to be "necessary" in an island with limited land. e ru- mour mill has it that land reclamation will be limited to renewable energy pro- jects, green spaces and public infrastruc- ture. Cynics question whether this policy will also allow more tourism and real estate development. But while the mani- festo refers to projects which benefit the country like renewable energy projects, it falls short of excluding real estate on reclaimed land, which speculators find very lucrative in coastal areas. A yet unpublished ERA study has identified six potential areas for land reclamation. ese include - Mġarr Harbour (Gozo), Buġibba and St Paul's Bay Waterfront, Qalet Marku, Porto- maso to Xgħajra, the spoil ground area off Xgħajra and the Marsaxlokk harbour area. Mother nature may not have in- tended for Malta to grow an indigenous population as high as 520,000 - and still growing. Studies predict that at this rate of population growth Malta may reach 700,000 by the year 2035. Realistically for a small island state of 316sq. km with the MTA planning to attract three point three million annual visitors, then it stands to reason to con- sider extra elbow room. One remem- bers with nostalgia how reclamation improved the logistics at Msida and old photos remind us how when the parish church was built it was facing the sea. In the coming years, 15,000 new for- eign workers are needed annually. As can be expected, the subject of land reclamation is resisted by environmen- talists and NGOs who militate against it saying such measures will upset the ecological, scientific and archaeologi- cal habitat amid other cultural values. Meanwhile, it follows that due to Malta's size, its growing population density and during post Covid, one expects a bur- geoning tourist sector. Others claim top priority should be given to social housing. Of course, this is what the Housing Authority is doing – that is inviting developers to come forward to form a joint venture to build new stock while financing the redevel- opment and rehabilitation of derelict or vacant houses. is is a noble cause but, in the mean- time, in my opinion there is nothing to stop us from attracting new investment to emulate Singapore's success in land reclamation. Singapore has opted for 24 per cent of land reclamation, having a population density of 8,155 people per square kilometre. Notwithstanding this concentration, yet it prides itself of more than 300 parks and four nature reserves. Singaporeans love their trees and almost 40 per cent of the country is covered by greenery (see artificial mushroom trees). us, our population density reaches 1,507 persons/sq. km, compared with the EU average of 117 persons/sq. km. Currently, with low unemployment, pol- iticians daily remind us that we rank as the fastest growing economy in the EU. Being so blessed with economic success, yet we need more elbow room to be able to enjoy spatial living conditions. Naturally, one meets with a natural resistance by coastal dwellers to any large-scale reclamation since the latter do not wish anything to spoil their pris- tine views. is may be understandable, but for the greater good something has to be sacrificed to provide more elbow room. Now that both sides of parliament voted for a Gozo tunnel/metro, these projects will extenuate the problem where to dump inert material. Last year, the government had iden- tified an offshore belt between 12 and 25 nautical miles as an Exclusive Eco- nomic Zone where it intends issuing concessions to private companies for the production of renewable energy, the production and storage of hydrogen, fish farms and even the establishment of "artificial islands". e belt is massive and incorporates a 900sq. km zone of relatively shallow waters around Hurd's Bank. Building artificial islands offshore will also form part of our land reclama- tion dream. By comparison, just reflect on how we created a striving cruise liner industry in Valletta and Cottonera by building new jetties – on reclaimed land. Environmen- talists need to balance their opposition and carefully weigh the advantages of achieving a better standard of living away from the frenzied high-rise cacophony at Tigne and Paceville environs. Certainly, land reclamation is not new to the Maltese islands and one can men- tion with satisfaction, the privatised Freeport terminals in Birzebbuga (em- ploying thousands) and the platform on which the Shanghai Electric power sta- tion and Electrogas stands. Really and truly, there will always be an ecological price to pay. e hardest hit, from a purely environmental stand- point, is obviously the seabed. Its integ- rity in terms of physical characteristics is ruined due to wiping out any biodiver- sity thriving on any particular site. Inev- itably there will be collateral damage to the posidonia oceanica meadows (sea- grass) that lie over large tracts of seabed at shallow depths around Qalet Marku. is merits serious consideration. Needless to say, the ecological signifi- cance of such meadows is well known in terms of stabilising the seabed and serv- ing as nurture grounds for an immense variety of ethnic species and other ma- rine organisms. Also, any illegal dumping of inert waste at sea to build retaining walls for break- water extensions disturbs the water col- umn, contributing to turbidity. Ecolo- gists warn us that substantial dumping takes ages to settle down as disturbed sediment on the seafloor and unassail- ably lowers the photosynthetic capabil- ities of aquatic species in that particular site to the detriment of the marine eco- system as a whole. Another concern is the toxic element inherent in unsorted waste such as heavy metals, burnt oil or other chemi- cal species that could be absorbed by the marine ecosystem and in the process go to contaminate food chains. Voters were promised by the govern- ment that it would pursue an ambitious reclamation policy. If Cabinet approves, then that will be the day when Malta's foreshore will rise like a latter-day Phoenix out of the ashes.