Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/762759
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 14 DECEMBER 2016 News 6 CABS says illegal night trapping of plovers 'out of control' JEANELLE MIFSUD THE Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS) has called for the end of the trapping season, pointing to gross misconduct by trappers with regard to illegal night trapping and exceeding the quota. It said yesterday that bird trap- pers in Malta and Gozo "use the cloak of night as well as the ab- sence of the ALE to illegally trap thousands of plovers and other waders." In the last two weeks, members of the organisation conducted night patrols between 11pm and 4:30am to document the number of birds trapped outside the allowed hours. "We have mapped 82 active trap- ping sites where illegal bird callers were used during the night", CABS Wildlife Crime Officer Fiona Bur- rows said. "This is more than twice as many as found in 2015". CABS criticised the ALE – the police unit responsible for pre- venting hunting and trapping il- legalities – for not having officers on duty on any of the eight nights when the teams were out and tried to report the cases to the unit. "In most of the cases, we were told by police officers to wait until the morning and then report eve- rything to the ALE," Burrows said. In two cases from San Lawrenz and Zebbug, CABS said that the local police responded to the re- port and seized nets, callers as well as plastic decoys. It added that in both incidents the trappers could not be identified as they escaped in the dark when the police arrived. "In all the other 79 cases, nothing was done by the authorities as the ALE were not on duty, and district police were not equipped to deal with the cases," Burrows said. The organisation went on to say that it had alerted the police headquarters again early on Sun- day morning after birdwatchers found a trapping site in Tal-Qadi near Salina to be active at around 1:30am. "Officers of the Naxxar police station followed up the report, but had to wait until ALE were on duty after 5am, when the ALE seized a 40-metres-long clap-net as well as several unringed Golden Plovers and a Lapwing used as live decoys. Also in this case the trappers fled and could not be apprehended," the statement read. According to CABS, the Mal- tese government had declared that trapping of Golden Plovers will on- ly be allowed under strict supervi- sion and limited conditions due to the species being of conservation concern in the EU. "To ensure that only a small number of birds are caught the quota for this year´s season was officially set at 700 Golden Plovers which can be trapped in daytime. Trappers are obliged to report every bird caught by SMS, so that the season can be closed when the bag limit is reached," CABS said, adding that this bag limit only ex- ists on paper as trappers will never report birds caught illegally in the night. "Golden Plovers are mostly noc- turnal thus making it very easy for trappers to catch whole flocks in the dark. With dozens of trap- ping sites operating every night it stands to reason that a four- figure number has been already caught illegally since November. The government´s total failure to curb illegal night trapping has in- vited poachers to catch much more birds than allowed. The quota for plovers has been exceeded and the season should be closed with im- mediate effect," CABS press officer Axel Hirschfeld added. Ghaxaq fireworks factory dismissed by technical committee JAMES DEBONO AN Ghaxaq fireworks factory proposed by the Ghaqda Tan- Nar San Gabriel, Tarxien has been given the thumbs down by an ad hoc technical com- mittee set up to assess the safety aspects of new fireworks factories. But no decision has been tak- en yet by the same committee with regard to another contro- versial factory in Wied id-Dies in Gharghur. The technical committee was appointed to conduct risk assessments for new applica- tions for fireworks factories before these are submitted to the Planning Authority. Even if granted clearance by the committee, new fireworks fac- tories still need a permit from the Planning Authority. Ongo- ing discussions on other com- plexes are still pending, a PA spokesperson told MaltaToday. According to a PA spokesper- son the committee prepares very detailed technical reports, which include an assessment on the complex's risks. So far the ad hoc committee has given its approval to fire- works factories located outside development zones (ODZ) in Gharb, and in Ta' Hal Saf lieni in Luqa, both of which have al- ready been approved by the PA. The Ghaxaq application was already destined for refusal in 2013 but the application was postponed in view of the new policy on firework factories. The new policy controversially allows fireworks factories on dry agricultural land. The Ghaxaq council had ob- jected because the develop- ment abuts farmland worked by both part-time and full- time growers and because of its proximity to the Gudja ceme- tery, a number of green houses and neighboring businesses, which employ many workers. But the ad hoc committee has yet to take a decision on a num- ber of pending applications, in- cluding two ODZ factories in Kercem and Gharb, and anoth- er in the Wied id-Dies valley. Wied id-Dies application The decision to extend the footprint of the St Bartho- lomew's fireworks factory in Gharghur was postponed in view of the new policy ap- proved in 2014, despite a clear recommendation by the case officer to refuse it. New plans for this development were sub- mitted in November. A legal notice issued in 2013 allowed developers the option to ask for a postponement of decisions on applications that were likely to be affected by new policies. The St Bartholomew's fire- works factory application proposes the erection of two 18-square-metre stores, three 35-square-metre workshops, three 14-square-metre work- shops, one 21-square-metre mixing room and five two-me- tre high blast walls. The site of the development lies on the Madliena side of Wied id-Dies, 180 metres from the Swieqi residential area, which is being proposed for scheduling as a Grade 2 Area of Ecological Importance. The Environment Protection Directorate described the site as rich in vegetation associated with the presence of nearby carob trees. An ecological report pre- sented by the applicants states that the area is characterized by very little soil, and suggests that the grass in the area con- stitutes a severe fire hazard due to its proximity to the existing fireworks factory. But the MEPA case officer still called for the refusal of the application, both for ecological reasons and for its deleterious impact on Swieqi residents. The new policy bans new fireworks factories in Grade 1 and Grade 2 scheduled areas. But no such limits are imposed on extensions of existing fire- works factories. Other pending applications include one in an agricultural area in Kercem – in between the areas known as L-Awejna, Ta' Xellul and Ta' Wied il- Mans – outside development boundaries. The Kercem local council is objecting because of the secu- rity concerns raised by farm- ers. But developer Sammy Spi- teri insists his proposal is in line with the newly approved policy on fireworks. "There is nothing in the law saying that you cannot build a factory in the vicinity of farm- ers tilling the land," Spiteri told MaltaToday. Marsaxlokk 274-space car park recommended for approval JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Directorate is recommending the approval of a huge car park lying outside de- velopment zones, despite the ob- jections of the Environment and Resources Authority. A final decision is due to be taken by the Planning Authority's board on 12 January. The car park, proposed by the secretariat of minister without portfolio Konrad Mizzi, will be located in an area proposed for scheduling as a buffer zone for an Area of Ecological importance. It will cater for 274 parking spac- es and occupy 10,300 square me- tres of land – the equivalent of one and a half football pitches – and is meant to address parking needs in view of the pedestrianisation of the Marsaxlokk promenade. The site of the new car park is adjacent to an existing football pitch in the immediate vicinity of the promenade. Various enforcement orders have been issued in the past against the dumping of rubble in this area. The government has justified choosing this site be- cause it is already disturbed. But the ERA has pointed out that the area is presently degrad- ed simply because unauthorised parking and littering were al- lowed in the past, and insisted that this should not be considered as "a stepping stone" to turn the remaining agricultural land into a car park. The planning directorate over- ruled these objections because two other areas identified in the local plan for the development of car parks cannot be used. This is because the area lying between the primary school and Triq Ze- jtun has been taken over by resi- dential development, while the area in the vicinity of Maghluq is being kept free from development due to Natura 2000 restrictions. The ERA has proposed the use of the area immediately adjacent to the football pitch and insisted that the car park is "unnecessary" and unacceptable from an envi- ronmental point of view.