Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/758493
TIM DIACONO PEOPLE who walk on or jump off the Azure Window in Dwe- jra, Gozo will now be subjected to a minimum €1,500 fine. This was announced in an emergency enforcement order published by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), a week after a viral video showed large rocks falling off the iconic site as a man jumped off it. The emergency order states that no one, unless authorised by ERA, should access, walk, abseil, climb or jump off the Window, or access the sea underneath it. Those who breach the conservation order will be prosecuted in court, with pen- alties set at a minimum of €1,500 and a maximum of prison time. It will be valid until June next year, when it will be replaced by per- manent legislation that will allow ERA to hand out administrative penalties on the spot. "We have no control over nature, but we can control human activity so as to safeguard the window for as long as possible," ERA chief ex- ecutive Ruben Abela told a press conference. Around 90% of the Window's outer layer is estimated to have eroded over the past three dec- ades. Bollards with warning signs will now be set up around the Win- dow and a park ranger will be em- ployed to monitor the zone. Fur- ther details on security measures will be announced at a press con- ference in a few weeks' time, once the environment, tourism and Gozo ministries analyze a report that will be drafted by the newly- formed Dwejra committee. Historian Timothy Gambin, chairman of the committee, said that he will present the recom- mendations in two weeks' time after analyzing three separate ex- pert reports on the Window. "We received financial estimates on how much it will cost to hire a watchman for the area," he said, while declining to provide a fig- ure. "Tourists and visitors will be educated before visiting the site that the Window is to be admired from a distance." Environment minister Jose Her- rera described Dwejra as a "tour- ist magnet" and "one of the most beautiful areas in the Maltese Is- lands". He pledged not to make light of security at the Window, admit- ting that environmental enforce- ment has been traditionally lax in Malta over the years. "I am fixated with boosting en- vironmental enforcement. Intro- ducing pro-environment policies without adding the necessary en- forcement is like throwing dust in people's eyes." He said that he had personally proposed the erection of a fence to block people from walking on the Window, but that the idea was discarded by experts who warned that such a move could have ad- verse environmental effects. tdiacono@mediatoday.com.mt maltatoday, SUNDAY, 4 DECEMBER 2016 News GIFT VOUCHERS ALSO AVAILABLE VIEW MENUS ONLINE @ WWW.HOTELFORTINA.COM Christmas Eve: €45.00 per person Christmas Day: €40.00 per person New Years Eve: €50.00 per person New Years Day: €45.00 per person FESTIVE THEMED BANQUETS FESTIVE DINING FORTINA HOTELS SERVING A' LA CARTE MENUS WITH ADDITIONAL SEASONAL SPECIALITIES Fortina Hotels, Tigné Seafront, Sliema SLM 3012, Malta CHRISTMAS SPA OFFER FOR EVERY €100 SPENT YOU RECEIVE AN EXTRA €20 TO SPEND IN THE SPA NOT TO BE INCLUDED IN OTHER SPECIAL OFFERS Reservations: 2346 6666 Email: restaurants@fortinasparesort.com Spa Reception: 2346 2149 / 2347 Email: spa@fortinasparesort.com Walking on Azure Window now a fineable offence