Bulebel ODZ petrol station set for refusal as new one proposed in Zabbar

While the PA is set to refuse an application for an ODZ petrol station in Zejtun, it has just received another proposal on 3,000sq.m of ODZ land in Zabbar.

The latest proposal involves the relocation of an existing fuel station in Tal-Qroqq to a 1,795sq.m site in Triq Villabate which links Zabbar to Marsaskala.

The site earmarked for the new petrol station is presently awaiting enforcement action by the PA against the dumping of construction waste, which dates back to 2011. The site is surrounded by agricultural land.

A proposed development for a 3,000sq.m ODZ petrol station on agricultural land opposite the Bulebel industrial estate in Zejtun is likely to be refused by the Planning Board in a meeting set for tomorrow.

This is because the case officer is calling on the Planning Board to refuse the application because the site lacks an access “from a distributor or arterial road,” in breach of the existing policy regulating ODZ petrol stations.

The site in question is accessed from Triq Hal Tarxien, which is a secondary road, located at a considerable distance from the centre of Zejtun.

The case officer also highlighted the site’s proximity to the Wied iz-Zring watercourse, which is considered as an important water catchment, forming part of a Valley Protection Zone.

Wirt Iz-Zejtun, an organisation dedicated to the protection of the locality’s local heritage had objected to the application. The NGO had recently led a successful campaign against the proposed extension of the Bulebel industrial estate.

The existing policy regulating ODZ petrol stations allows 3,000sq.m petrol stations on agricultural land opposite industrial areas.

However, in this case, the application, which also foresees a VRT station for trucks, does not conform to another criteria of the policy, which requires fuel stations to be located on distributor or arterial road.

A number of pending petrol stations are still being considered under this controversial policy, which has already led to the approval of petrol stations on 12,000sq.m of agricultural land. The PA is currently preparing a new policy.

The Environment and Resources Authority has already presented its proposals aimed at eliminating loopholes like that of allowing petrol stations on land opposite or adjacent to industrial areas.

One of the most controversial pending applications awaiting a PA decision foresees a mega petrol station along Rabat road, which would require the removal of five Aleppo pine trees. A controversial petrol station application proposed in Triq l-Mgarr in Mgarr by Halmann Velsix Group has recently been withdrawn.​