Attard’s Wied Incita quarry earmarked for industrial park by construction company Bilom

Construction group Bilom is proposing the development of a huge industrial park for small and medium-sized enterprises equipped with an overlying solar farm over 158,000 square metres on the site currently taken up by quarries in Wied Incita, Attard. 

The development also foresees the construction of a family recreational park and a retail outlet, all set on the 158,000 square metre tract equivalent in area to 22 football fields, of land outside development zones in Wied Incita. 

Plans seen by MaltaToday envision the development of 235 garages occupying 55,000 square metres of land, a retail outlet to be built over 7,460 m2 while the family recreation park would occupy only 2,550 m2. Land is also identified for recycling facilities.

Plans envision the development of 235 garages, a retail outlet and a family recreation park

The land earmarked for development constitutes land disturbed by quarrying activities, which according to residents are causing a serious inconvenience due to noise and dust. But as proposed the development also foresees an extension to one of the existing quarries and the relocation of the existing quarry entrance and administrative offices to the Zebbug side.

Moreover the development does not envision the rehabilitation of the land for agricultural use. According to the local plan “on exhaustion of the mineral resource, the Wied Incita quarry is to be used as a natural reservoir and drain area”. 

A draft policy on solar farms identifies disused quarries as potential sites for ODZ solar panels.

The local plan also proposes a buffer zone between the residential area and the quarries. In the latest application the family park is being proposed as the buffer zone.

The authority is facing a large number of applications for developments such as old people’s homes or warehousing facilities in ODZ quarries. Environmentalists have objected to these developments, insisting that quarries should be rehabilitated for agricultural use.

Michael Bugeja, one of the owners of Bilom Construction Limited, is registered as the sole owner of the huge tract of land.

The project is still in the initial stage and the Planning Authority has yet to issue a screening letter informing the developers whether the project conforms to existing policies.

Founded in the mid 1980s as a neighbourhood construction company, the Bilom Group has emerged over the last years as one of the leaders in the real estate market, and is presently engaged in various large projects.

Plans presented in 2010 by Mark Aquilina, who owns Wied Incita Quarries Limited, had foreseen the development of a golf course in the same area. But the application was withdrawn a year later. The golf course plans presented by the developers also included an artificial lake with water sports facilities.