Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1487671
NEWS 5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 7 DECEMBER 2022 Applications are open for the Premju Ġieħ l-Artiġjanat Malti 2022. This edition aims to: • Award excellence in design, innovation and custom manufacturing • Inspire collaborations leading to innovative products and initiatives • Recognise persons providing a valid contribution to the sector Download the regulations and the application forms from the website: www.maltacrafts.org. Submission deadline is the 24th of February, 2023. An Information Session will be held on the 12th of January, 2023. Register, or obtain more information, by sending an email on info@maltacrafts.org. Geologists say 'updated' map is replete with errors and omissions MATTHEW VELLA GEOLOGISTS have said that an 'updated' geological map pub- lished by the finance ministry's Continental Shelf Department contains multiple errors and replicates significant omissions from maps produced during the British era up until 1993. Dr Peter Gatt, the president of the Malta Chamber of Geolo- gists, said the names of authors of the 'updated' map are not dis- closed and remain secret. "Acknowledgement of author- ship is an essential requisite for credibility and accountability in any publication with scientific content. The Chamber recom- mends that the Geological Map is used with caution and only following the advice from a pro- fessional geologist." Gatt said a routine desk study would have revealed publica- tions and PhDs by Maltese ge- ologists who have contributed significantly to the updating of Malta's stratigraphy but were ignored. He also said an erroneous ge- ological map can have serious consequences on public safety and natural resources develop- ment. The geological map of the Maltese islands is used for excavation and the protection of adjacent third-party property, but a 2019 legal notice removed the requirement for a geological investigation that was enacted in 2013. Gatt said this was ex- posing the public and especially third-party property alongside excavation sites to greater risks, now aggravated by an erroneous geological map. "Malta remains the only coun- try in Europe where Geologists have no official or legal recog- nition. The Malta Chamber of Geologists insists that the pro- fession of the geologist is rec- ognised by the state. Despite the Chamber's representations to Minister Stefan Zrinzo Az- zopardi, the situation remains unchanged. "To make matters worse, the Chairman of the Building In- dustry Consultative Council (BICC), perit Charles Buhagiar has denied the Malta Chamber of Geologists membership to the BICC Advisory Board. Ge- ologists were also denied the possibility to contribute to the drafting of the Building Code," Gatt said. Malta also remains the on- ly European country without a national geological service. European countries have long established their own Geolog- ical Service or Survey which is responsible for geological map- ping and investigation of the country's natural resources as well as identifying potential geo- logical hazards that can destroy property and lives, as happened recently in Ischia Island, Italy, or the geohazards that left several families homeless in St Paul's Bay in the past few days. "The deplorable situation in Malta contrasts with the ap- proach taken in Europe where geologists are a recognised pro- fession and contribute to the protection and safety of the pub- lic," Gatt said. POLICE have arrested three men aged 31, 32 and 35 over the murder of a man in St Julian's on Monday afternoon. The suspects are Romanian and were arrested early on Tuesday, the police said. They are being questioned at the police depot in Floriana. Police also gave an update on the identity of Monday's victim, who was identified as a British national resident in Romania. The 44-year-old victim was knifed after a fight broke out among a group of men on Triq Ross in Paceville. The fight hap- pened at around 3:30pm on Monday and the victim died a couple of hours later at Mater Dei Hospital. The aggressors had fled the scene before the police arrived. Investigations are ongoing and a magisterial inquiry is continu- ing. Three held over St Julian's murder Geological map of the Maltese Islands