Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1520629
6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 MAY 2024 NEWS JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt A controversial chicken farm in Mellieha regularised in 2016, is now earmarked for an agri-tour- ism project with six rooms, each with their own swimming pool. The development is being pro- posed in the Tat-Tomna area, just off Louis Wettinger Street atop Mellieħa ridge. The plans also include an open kitchen, a food serving area and other ancillary facilities includ- ing sheep pens. The applicant Joseph Gau- ci has declared that part of the land earmarked for the project is government owned. He has also indicated that although he does not fully own the site, he has the consent of the other owners. While the new development will replace an existing eye sore, the agri tourism raises concerns of urban sprawl in this area of Mellieha. Moreover, neighbouring farm- ers who contacted MaltaToday claim that access to their farms could be impacted because a public pathway is in the site earmarked for the new develop- ment. The sanctioning of the chicken farm was originally refused by the Planning Authority in 2010 and an enforcement order issued in 2011. But this was reversed in 2016 following a decision by an ap- peal's tribunal which had re- voked the original decision and sent back the application for the reconsideration of the Planning Authority under the new rural policy approved in 2014. Although the case officer still argued that the application should be rejected because the chicken farm was located 140m from a residential area, it was still approved by the Planning Com- mission. A comparison between aerial photos taken in 1998 and 2004 indicates that only a small part of the existing farm existed prior to 1998. The applicant is a regis- tered poultry producer. Gauci had also unsuccessful- ly applied to extend the chicken farm over a neighbouring plot of land, but the application was turned down by the Planning Au- thority in 2016, with the decision being confirmed on appeal fol- lowing protests by residents. The rural policy approved in 2014 allows the conversion or redevelopment of permitted buildings within an established farming enterprise, provided that the total floor space dedicated for accommodation and ancillary fa- cilities is not larger than 200sq.m. THE emission of harmful pollut- ants from a temporary diesel plant at Delimara are expected to be high only in "worst-case scenari- os". The new plant will be used to plug spikes in energy demand dur- ing hot summer days. Pollutants like Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) could be high when add- ed to the more severe impact of car usage during calm summer days – because in good weather the emissions settle in the imme- diate neighbourhood of the plant – when peak energy demand kicks in, Enemalta said in studies for a permit for the new plant. But overall, the impact on air quality is expected to be low, on- ly as long as the use of the plant is kept to the envisaged total 21-day period during which the plant – expected to be used for the next three years – will be operational. Enemalta and UNEC Ltd sub- mitted the study to amend the Delimara power plant's IPPC (In- tegrated Pollution Prevention and Control) permit for the new diesel plant, whose emissions on the sur- rounding area must be monitored at law. UNEC, an offshoot of the Bonni- ci Brothers Group, recently won a tender to supply the diesel plant. The Environment and Resources Authority, which has exempted the new plant from a full environ- ment impact assessment, is receiv- ing feedback from the public on the proposed amendment to the IPPC permit. Overall, the studies conclude that the impact on air quality will be low mainly because the plant will only be used for a limited peri- od of time, pointing out that such an impact depends "on the extent to which the plant is required to operate". The impact will itself be "negli- gible" when weather conditions facilitate the dispersion of emis- sions to the atmosphere, for ex- ample during storm events when the LNG tanker is put on the storm moorings and gas supply is suspended. In this case, emis- sions from the emergency plant will replace those from the main D4 plant, and also be rapidly dis- persed, Enemalta said. The impact on air quality will be greater when the plant is used to make up for shortages in ener- gy supply during peak demand in February, and particularly in the summer months, when the new emissions are added to the cumu- lative impact of other pollution sources. Emissions from the existing pow- er plant are not the major source of pollution in the area. A review of national emissions highlights the high contribution of road transport to various pollutants including NOx, carbon dioxide (CO2) and PM (particulate-mat- ter) values. NOx emissions from diesel combustion will be adverse, but the impact is only mitigated by limiting the operational hours of the plant to not more than 500 operating hours per year. So even the limited use of the emergency plant during low wind conditions can be expected to re- sult in "a transient cumulative im- pact", added to those already expe- rienced in other localities largely derived from road transport. Given that the emergency plant can be expected to be used for just 21 days over three years "in the worst-case scenario, the signifi- cance of this impact is deemed to be low." Noise emissions are also deemed to be be minimal, with each indi- vidual diesel generator unit placed in noise suppression enclosures to reduce generated noise to the surrounding areas. The combined noise impact during full operation will be just 100dB – the equivalent of the noise made by a hair dryer – at 15m from each site. But the studies warn that just a simple malfunction – such as a damaged bearing on a ventilator fan – may cause "disproportionate nuisance", and called for regular inspections. The temporary plant will give the country an extra 60MWe – 60 million Watts of electric capacity. The new temporary plant was proposed after Malta endured 10 days of power cuts amidst record heat waves in July 2023. In a letter urging ERA to exempt the project from an Environment Impact As- sessment, Enemalta warned that it would not be able to guarantee the country "security of energy sup- ply" during peak summer months, without the new plant. Agri-tourism proposed instead of Mellieha chicken farm 'Low' impact from diesel plant that will plug summer energy shortage Farmers concerned project will hamper access to their fields Malta has chosen an emergency 60MW diesel plant to generate an emergency supply of energy for peak demand The chicken farm in Mellieha