James Debono
While the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) is set to refuse an application for a fireworks factory in Tas-Sanap in Munxar, a brand new application for another fireworks factory outside development zones (ODZ) has been presented in the area known as Landar ta’ Geriska, in Gharb.
Although the Gozo and Comino Local Plan contains a “general presumption against new fireworks factories in Gozo”, a new application for an ODZ factory on agricultural land has been presented in Gharb.
A recently published case officer report is calling for the rejection of the Munxar factory, arguing the development is not acceptable since the site falls within a scheduled area and a Special Area of Conservation protected by the EU habitats directive. MEPA’s nature panel had already objected to this development, because providing access to the factory would require opening a route through the protected watercourse in the Kantra valley.
The rejection of the proposed factory will bring an end to a long saga that started in 1997, when a factory located 70 metres away was completely demolished in an explosion that left two fatalities. Subsequently, an application to reconstruct the factory was turned down, after strong objections from the council and the local parish. But in 2008, the 20 July Pyrotechnic Society reapplied to construct the factory in the protected site.
The proposed factory triggered controversy after Munxar mayor Joe Sultana refused to take a stand against the development. Instead, the council sent a flyer to residents asking for comments on the factory after the expiry of the consultation period that takes place when an application is lodged with MEPA.
The council did send its opinion to MEPA, saying that Munxar’s residents objected to the “hazard” posed by the proposed factory.
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