Southerners ‘have no trust in public authorities’ – EIS
Delimara social study says residents don’t trust Enemalta’s choice
James Debono “A general lack of trust in public authorities” prevails in the Marsaxlokk and Birzebbugia communities, according to a social impact assessment into the power station extension for Delimara.
The study is based on a series of town hall meetings in which residents were briefed about the environmental impact studies related to the project – the subject of controversy due to the technology chosen by Enemalta and the amount of toxic waste the extension will generated.
According to the study, the local community is disillusioned about the whole permitting process because, while high standards are cited before development is approved, there is no will to enforce these standards once it is approved.
According to the study, people were far from reassured by Enemalta’s decision to opt for heavy fuel oil which was described as “the worse available fuel”.
Some of those interviewed claimed that in five years time, the new power station will be emitting the same levels of pollution as the Marsa power station because of Enemalta’s negative track record.
People living in the vicinity of the power station expressed their concern on the daily generation of 30 tonnes of toxic waste by the new plant. According to the study, these people insisted that this waste should not be transported on land to the Freeport but should be taken directly by sea.
Delimara controversy
The choice of a diesel engine turbine for Delimara has come under considerable protest by opposition parties as well as environmentalists, and a rival bidder that claims its gas turbine was much cleaner, and cheaper than the chosen technology.
A report by the finance ministry’s permanent secretary has defended the Enemalta tendering process for the €200 million extension to Delimara, the tender of which was awarded to Danish firm BWSC.
But Labour MP Evarist Bartolo has revealed emails that he claims prove that a local middleman and former Enemalta employee had been carrying out informal talks with Enemalta officers for BWSC before tendering opened.
Enemalta claims the “informal discussions” between BWSC’s representative – former Enemalta employee Joseph Mizzi – and the corporation’s officers in 2004 and 2005, were normal practice.
Emails sent by the representative to BWSC officials Martin Kok Jensen and Anders Langhorn reveal Mizzi pointed out the “need to tap another source higher up in the political hierarchy”. The claim is made with reference to technical specifications being presented to ‘non-technical’ Enemalta officials.
Additionally, BWSC’s local partners also include Vassallo Builders, whose major shareholder Nazzareno Vassallo is a business partner of Enemalta chairman Alex Tranter. Tranter says he declared his conflict of interest on 26 June 2008 when Vassallo was listed as a possible sub-contractor for the civil works on the Delimara extension, and that he has had no input “whatsoever” in discussions with Enemalta directors on the tender.
Rival bidder Bateman also claims the new power station was earmarked to run on gas and not using a heavy fuel engine such as the one proposed by BWSC. Bateman said this ran counter to Malta’s environmental policy to turn to gas by 2015, and that BWSC’s offer was €16 million more expensive than its gas technology.
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