Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/258814
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 12 FEBRUARY 2014 News 4 CONTINUES FROM PAGE 1 Two three- month post-commissioning re- ports were produced in June and December 2013, covering 14 De- cember 2012 to 3 March 2013 and 4 March to 14 June 2013 respec- tively. The reports did not indicate De- limara had contributed to any ex- ceedances of the EU-limited values for PM10 or PM2.5 between De- cember and June 2013 at any sites. The recorded exceedances of the daily mean limit value for PM10 were attributed to regional sourc- es, sometimes specifically to Saha- ran dust events, or more localised events associated with wind direc- tions other than from the direction of the Delimara power station. The report also found "no clear temporal relationship" between the Delimara dust emissions and the particulate matter concentra- tions recorded at either Birzebbuga or Marsaxlokk. "In summary, spatial, temporal and exceedance analysis of PM10 and PM2.5 data and dust emissions has not indicated that the Delima- ra power station has contributed to any exceedances of the EU Limit Values for PM10 or PM2.5 during the post-commissioning period 14 December 2012 to 14 June 2013 at any sites. The recorded exceedanc- es of the daily mean Limit Value for PM10 have been attributable to regional sources, sometimes spe- cifically to Saharan dust events, or more localised events associated with wind directions other than from the direction of the DPS" – the report said. A public consultation document, baseline report and final report on the Delimara extension was made available yesterday on MEPA's website. To run on HFO, the Delimara extension was issued with an inte- grated pollution prevention control permit (IPPC) by the Malta Envi- ronment and Planning Authority (MEPA) Board in December 2011 and renewed in July 2012 and Sep- tember 2013, authorising its opera- tion. As part of the IPPC conditions, Enemalta asked for the monitoring of particulate matter (dust parti- cles) PM10 and PM2.5 at Marsax- lokk and Birzebbuga undertaken by AIS Environmental. AQMRC was in charge of data from Marsaxlokk and Birzebbuga, together with ambient monitoring data from MEPA, continuous stack monitoring and meteorological da- ta to determine whether the emis- sions from the diesel engines at Delimara power station during the period of HFO use, was exceeding the emission limits for particulate matter (dust particles) as laid down in the law. MEPA also carried out continu- ous monitoring of ambient air in Zejtun, Msida, Kordin, Attard (ozone only) and Gharb (back- ground site). All sites except At- tard monitor Benzene, Carbon Monoxide (CO), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx)/Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Ozone (O3), PM10, PM2.5 and Sul- phur Dioxide (SO2), as well as wind speed and direction. The decision on the final choice of fuel for the diesel engines was kept as a reserved matter, until the submission and analyses of ambi- ent air monitoring data. The cur- rent IPPC permit requires this de- cision to be taken by MEPA by not later than 31 March 2014. The ambient air monitoring has been assessed by an independent air quality consultant appointed by a monitoring committee, chaired by MEPA and local council repre- sentatives and a representative of Enemalta. The consultants have prepared a report using data prior to the full commissioning of DPSE which provides a baseline for the analy- ses of monitoring data over the six months following commissioning. A final consolidated report cov- ering six months' monitoring data (December 2012 – June 2013) with DPSE in full operation has also been prepared. The conclusions of this report will allow the Authority to decide to allow or not the con- tinued use of Heav y Fuel Oil (HFO) at the DPSE. Fenech reaction In an initial reaction, former fi- nance minister Tonio Fenech said the study confirmed that Labour had turned energy into a "political football". "We always maintained that al- though the BWSC plant was not gas-operated, the heav y fuel oil powered plant met the emission re- quirements set by the EU," Fenech, who was formerly responsible for Enemalta after the corporation selected BWSC to supply the tur- bines in 2010, said. He said that the daily monitor- ing carried out before and after the plant became operative, showed emissions falling below the limits set by the EU's emissions direc- tive. "Labour's pre-election claims that the Delimara power plant was a cancer factory have once again been proved false. Not only did La- bour fail to implement its promise to convert the plant to diesel, but it has gone on to ask MEPA for a three-year extension on the use of HFO. This is the biggest proof that Labour was lying before the elec- tion," Fenech said. Labour initially said it would instantly shift the new Delimara turbines to run on diesel, rather than HFO, something that did not materialise due to costs associated with the change in fuel. Fenech said that Labour was set to commit another serious error in opting for a liquefied natural gas storage terminal that will be situ- ated in the Marsaxlokk harbour. Describing Labour's decision as "foolish", Fenech said that experts have warned that using a LNG vessel anchored permanently in the picturesque Marsaxlokk har- bour carried risks of leakages and f lames. A MaltaToday analysis of the environmental impact assess- ment suggests that the risk of leak- ages remains minimal. "It is inconceivable to have such a f loating terminal permanently anchored in a harbour which is inhabited by thousands of resi- dents. The LNG vessel should be anchored in a specially dedicated port such as the Freeport." The national energy corporation Enemalta has discarded the op- tion to locate the gas terminal away from the Delimara site, and instead use an LNG vessel anchored to a jetty. The f loating terminal will be anchored permanently to the jetty, as proposed by Electrogas consor- tium who have been awarded the contract to construct the new gas fuelled power plant. The social impact assessment on the 215MW gas plant and lique- fied natural gas storage terminal shows that the most disliked option is that of storing the gas in gigan- tic tanks located on land – this was originally Labour's energy plan, and was derided by the Nationalist Party, claiming the tanks were 'as big as the Mosta church dome' and a potential safety hazard for Mar- saxlokk. The land-based tanks have now been discarded due to safety reasons, but it was one of three op- tions assessed in the EIA. However, the vast majority of res- idents in seaside localities Marsax- lokk and Birzebbugia said that they would prefer having the gas storage infrastructure located outside the Marsaxlokk harbour. Labour's decision to go for a f loat- ing terminal made a mockery of its previous claims that resident's health was priceless, Fenech said. "The Labour government has said that it has opted against having a terminal outside the harbour for financial reasons, exposing the hy- pocrisy. They are now putting costs above human health," Fenech said. Report finds no breach of emission limits Tonio Fenech: "We always maintained that although the BWSC plant was not gas-operated, the heavy fuel oil powered plant met the emission requirements set by the EU"