Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1515076
19 ANALYSIS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 JANUARY 2024 in Bengħajsa started about two years before Project Green's birth, the project was completed by the agency. The area covering 17,000sq.m in Birżebbuġa was originally earmarked for the expansion of the Freeport terminal but gov- ernment decided to develop it into a green park. The park is a green open space surrounded by 4,000 trees, equipped with picnic benches made of sustain- able material, and information boards explaining the charac- teristics of the trees and shrubs existing in the park. For chil- dren, obstacle games have been installed with benches specifi- cally made from sustainable ma- terial. Picnic tables are adapted for people using a wheelchair to have a place at the table and fit comfortably. In Bormla, a car park previous- ly slated for development as part of an expansion of the American University of Malta will be trans- formed into a public garden with underground parking. Given that this area was pre- viously utilised as an open mar- ket, the architectural design for the garden will incorporate elements reminiscent of the original market. Specifically, an arched cloister will be construct- ed, serving the dual purpose of preserving some of the historical market features and acting as a barrier between the road and the garden. Project Green's costliest pro- ject according to the data tabled in parliament is San Ġwann's Vjal ir-Riħan open space. The project aims to increase present open space threefold to a total of 7,200sq.m, by reconnecting two sides of San Ġwann, cur- rently split by Vjal ir-Riħan, with safer, car-free pedestrian connections, including a sen- sory garden, aquatic garden, an amphitheatre, and a sustainable playground, to create "a new green lung in the centre of San Gwann." This project is slated to cost some €30,000,000. All seven new open spaces are set to cost €50,808,227. The Hospice Landscape Garden One entry from the list tabled in parliament that could not be classified in the categories above was the proposed Hospice Land- scape Garden. This project will create a large garden near Hos- pice Malta's palliative care cen- tre in Santa Venera. The land that will be used is currently abandoned and was originally slated for develop- ment. The investment will cost €1.2 million. This entry was not included in the category of new open spaces as it is unique in that it will not be open to the public. Instead, the garden will be reserved for Hospice patients, especially those who cannot visit public places due to health risks. Project Green's criticism One year after being estab- lished as Labour's flagship envi- ronmental investment meant to match previous investment into infrastructure, Project Green draws ample criticism. Firstly, critics often point out that the agency is responsible for small pocket gardens and exten- sions to existing spaces, leaving much to be desired for environ- mentalists and people who feel suffocated by constant construc- tion. This analysis can prove that such criticism is not entirely false, given that out of 60 pro- jects thus far, only seven of them resulted in new open spaces. Project Green's second prob- lem is the fact that despite heavy marketing efforts aimed at cre- ating the perception of rapidly increasing open spaces for fam- ilies, (which have now come to include paying influencers to post about the agency's spaces) government is simultaneously allowing public land to be devel- oped. Shortly after Project Green was established, a plot of pub- lic land in the Tal-Qortin area in Mellieħa was put up for sale, despite hosting endemic and in- digenous shrubs. The plot is also one of the few unbuilt pieces of land remaining in the area. This contrasts heavily with initiatives to increase green open spaces for the public. Finally, some would reasonably argue that the open spaces be- ing built are simply not enough to create a balance between the environment and the rampant development that has engulfed the islands in recent years. Case in point is an entry from the Environment Ministry's list in Żurrieq named Pjazza Kar- melitani. This analysis classified the space as one of the seven new open spaces, as Project Green aims to plant more trees in the area, while pedestrianising a redundant vehicular path. While the surrounding res- idents will benefit from this project, it is a miniscule im- provement when compared to the monstrous development approved by the Planning Au- thority only a few metres away in Nigret. Here, 11,500sq.m of agricultur- al land risks eradication, prompt- ing several Żurrieq residents to ask their MPs (including Miriam Dalli) to transform the area into a rural conservation area. Despite being only one year old, Project Green is already fac- ing risks of being labelled as a greenwashing entity. No matter how hard it tries to convince the public otherwise, it is government's imperative not to contradict its own flagship environmental initiative. open spaces or a green washing exercise? Top: Bormla; Above left: Benghajsa, Birzebbuga; Above right: Nigret