Land reclamation: decision imminent after conclusion of studies

The Environment and Resources Authority has confirmed that its draft report on land reclamation has been passed over to government and that “a cross-government consultation” is still underway, as MaltaToday has learned that a decision on which sites will be earmarked for land reclamation projects is now imminent.

Back in 2019, the ERA was tasked by the government with identifying potential sites for land reclamation projects.

A draft report based on €11 million study of the seabed leaked to MaltaToday in December 2019, had identified a vast stretch of sea area between Portomaso and Xgħajra as ideal for large-scale land reclamation projects.

Several other sites, such as Qalet Marku in Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq and the Freeport, were also seen as ideal for medium and small-scale projects.

Other sites identified in this report included the Mġarr harbour in Gozo, St Paul’s Bay, Marsaxlokk and a spoil ground off Xgħajra already utilised for the dumping of construction waste. The latest ERA annual report also refers to an extensive benthic survey to gather information about the state of this spoil ground.

The ERA had insisted that the map identifying the sites was only indicative of which sites posed the least environmental problems. For example, although the whole arch between Portomaso and Xgħajra was identified, this site also includes the Grand Harbour where cultural heritage considerations excludes such developments.

The major consideration in the ERA report seen by MaltaToday was “the avoidance” of protected habitats, especially areas which include the priority habitat Posidonia beds, which are protected under EU law due to their crucial importance as the lungs of the Mediterranean sea.

But such habitats are also found in the area off Portomaso, which formed part of the preferred site, and at Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq, which was identified for small and medium scale projects.

Although back in 2019 former environment minister Jose Herrera had announced an imminent decision by government on “five or six sites”, a year later the ERA told MaltaToday “an analysis” of potential sites was still underway.

But now the ERA has confirmed that the ball is in the government’s court as its draft study is now subject to a cross government consultation.

MaltaToday is informed that while a decision is imminent, it remains unclear whether the green light for land reclamation will be limited to renewable energy projects, green spaces and public infrastructure or whether this will also allow tourism and real estate development.

One major consideration is the financial aspect. A previous report under the Gonzi administration which first toyed with the idea in 2006, had concluded that large-scale land reclamation would only be economically feasible if real estate is allowed.

And significantly the decision on land reclamation is no longer being tied to finding a use for construction waste but is being increasingly tied to economic development, in a context where ODZ development on land is increasingly shunned.

Speaking to parliament in May, new infrastructure minister Aaron Farrugia said that Malta would start reclaiming land within this legislature, arguing that such a move is crucial if the economy is to keep on growing. “Land reclamation will no longer remain a sentence that we see in every electoral manifesto but is never implemented,” Farrugia said. “Under this legislature, we will have the opportunity for land reclamation to become a reality. Malta needs it, the economy needs it and the government will therefore aim in this direction.”

Labour’s manifesto includes a blanket commitment for land reclamation projects, which is deemed to be “necessary” in a small island with limited land.

But while the manifesto refers to projects which benefit the country like renewable energy projects, it falls short of excluding real estate on reclaimed land, which can be very lucrative in coastal areas.

The government has also identified an offshore belt between 12 and 25 nautical miles as an Exclusive Economic Zone where it intends issuing concessions to private companies for the production of renewable energy, the production and storage of hydrogen, fish farms and even the establishment of “artificial islands”. The belt includes 900sq.km zone of shallow waters around Hurd’s Bank.