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Faced with the anger of farmers and Manikata residents, the government has backed down on its controversial proposal to build a road on agricultural land.
But the alternative which has been proposed by the Transport Authority could cut through the Mizieb aquifer, which is a protected water body, as per the Water Framework Directive.
The Mizieb aquifer is already threatened by the proposed development of a golf course at Xaghra l-Hamra, which lies on top of it, and from salinisation resulting from the extraction of water from illegal boreholes.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Urban Development and Roads insisted that the proposal is at a very early stage and the potential impact on the aquifer has not yet been assessed.
Replying to a parliamentary question earlier on this month, Roads Minister Jesmond Mugliett said that after consultation with residents and farmers at Manikata, the Transport Authority had formulated an alternative to the Xemxija bypass.
In his reply Mugliett said that ADT experts have proposed that the new Xemxija bypass should follow the existing road across Pwales Valley in the area known as l-Imbordin, and then enter a tunnel under Mizieb to emerge at Selmun Hill at the beginning of the hairpin bends.
Asked on the impact of the proposed tunnel on the aquifer a spokesperson for the Malta Resources Authority told MaltaToday it had not received any communication from the ADT. The authority said it is not yet in a position to comment on the route indicated by the minister.
The MRA is responsible for protecting Malta’s underground water sources.
According to the MRA, the Transport Authority was considering a number of routes, one of which, envisaged the drilling of a tunnel through Bajda Ridge.
But following the public consultation process, MRA provided hydrological data to assist ADT to find a number of alternative routes.
The MRA spokesperson said that the authority will only be able to comment when final plans have been completed and submitted to it.
A spokesperson for Mugliett told MaltaToday that the aim of the new proposal is to find a practicable route through l-Imbordin and Mizieb as an alternative to the proposal originally submitted by French engineering consultants BCEOM.
“If the initial indications emerging from these studies are negative, the Malta Transport Authority will continue seeking the alternative route which would have the least environmental impact,” the Ministry’s spokesperson said.
According to the Ministry the project can still wait as it is not be included in the imminent commitments for funding from the EU.
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