James Debono
A spokesperson for the European Commission has confirmed that in two months’ time Brussels will be deciding on the legality of the extension of development zones, which took place in 2005 amid great controversy.
The extension was an exercise in “rationalising” the development boundaries that were decreed back in 1992 when the planning authority was created.
The resentment at the decision brought together the biggest lobby of concerned citizens ever to protest against the government’s decision to increase development zones.
“A proposal for the next step on this file will be put to the Commission to decide upon at the next available infringement meeting, due to take place at the end of November,” a spokesperson for the European Commission told MaltaToday.
The Commissioner issued a letter of formal notice – a first warning – to Malta back in May 2007, for failing to abide to the EU’s directive on Strategic Environment Impact Assessments, when development boundaries were extended.
The SEA Directive requires an impact assessment for any government plan which has an impact on the environment.
No such assessment was carried out when environment minister George Pullicino took the decision to extend development boundaries and subsequently endorsed local planning policies that were based on the new development boundaries.
According to Commission sources “the case raised a number of complex issues in relation to the requirements of the Directive and the procedure followed.”
When asked why it is taking the Commission so long to decide on this issue, the spokesperson said that “the need to assess the information provided by the Maltese authorities in response to the letter of formal notice, meant that it has not been possible to progress the case any earlier.”
Previously another spokesperson for the commission had indicated that a decision was expected to be taken during the summer.
It was MaltaToday which first asked the European Commission whether Malta was in breach of the SEA Directive in June 2005. Subsequently Alternattiva Demokratika and a number of NGOs questioned the legality of the extension of building boundaries in court because of violations of the SEA directive.
If the extension of the building boundaries is deemed by the European Commission to be in violation of EU directives, the government will be facing a legal quandary because the legality of permits issued according to these plans could be challenged.

MEPA accepting submissions
The Commission’s decision also coincides with the expiry of the two-year period during which MEPA was forbidden from enacting any changes to the local plans – the town planning guides – that were approved in 2006.
Legally, MEPA can now start considering changes to the controversial local plans but unlike two years ago, it is now committed to observe the SEA Directive before enacting changes. This was confirmed by a MEPA spokesperson.
And now anyone can present a submission to MEPA on the local plan, based on planning grounds. The submissions will be analysed according to the provisions of the Development Planning Act.
The Development Planning Act provides for public consultation on any changes to an approved plan. It also states that MEPA must inform the public on the changes being considered.
But it is not clear whether MEPA will initiate a holistic revision of the local plans approved in 2006, or whether it will change these plans on a case-by-case basis. “In view of the current reform, MEPA is not currently in a position to officially communicate the details of how the local planning exercise will be conducted,” a spokesperson told MaltaToday.
MEPA has already started to receive submissions for revisions to the local plans, well before the expiry of the two-year period. Between January and March 2008, it received 13 submissions.
Last week the Lija local council announced it will be initiating a public consultation exercise before presenting its submissions to MEPA. Mayor Ian Castaldi Paris makes it clear that any revision to plans will not shift the goalposts for developers who were already issued with permits or whose applications are still being determined by MEPA.
Castaldi Paris said he wants this public consultation to be completely different from that carried out by MEPA in 2002. “The public at large could not understand the impact of these plans. No effort was made to explain technical details to them… People cannot be expected to understand technical issues simply by sending them a letter at home. A proper public consultation should include the use of visuals showing the impact of the changes on views. One need not be an architect to understand changes,” he told MaltaToday last week.
The Lija mayor proposes that consultation on local plans should be conducted on the same scale as the Euro changeover campaign before Malta switched its currency.

jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt