Crematorium proposed near Addolorata cemetery

A crematorium has been proposed once again on a 7,638sq.m plot of agricultural land to the south of the Santa Maria Addolorata Cemetery.

The area, known as tal-Ħorr, is outside development zones and designated as an area of high landscape value and a strategic open gap between urban areas.

The application was presented by Johann Camilleri on behalf of Active Group Limited. The company also declared full ownership of the entire site.

Plans foresee the development of a crematorium complex over two underground levels and a ground floor. Apart from the cremation area the development will also include two mortuaries, a multipurpose hall, a reception area, two viewing rooms, a cold room, five columbariums and other ancillary facilities. No existing trees will be felled but existing rubble walls will be demolished or altered.

A previous application by the same company had been refused in June 2018, before a new law regulating crematoriums came into place.

On that occasion the case officer recommended refusal on the basis of a planning policy introduced in 2014 which banned the development of new cemeteries and only allows extensions to existing ones. This means that crematoriums can only be developed as an extension of existing cemeteries. While recognising the need for alternative funerary techniques, the case officer had noted that the site for the development does not form part of the area identified by the local plan for cemetery extensions.

Moreover at that time, consultation with the relevant health authorities indicated a lack of legislation on the operation of a crematorium.

Cremation services have only been legal in Malta since May 2019 after a landmark piece of legislation was approved by Parliament. The law stipulates that any crematorium has to have a mortuary, a viewing room, adequate facilities for the extraction of implants from the body, a cremation room and a storage room for remains.

Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar, who had spearheaded the law, had argued that studies indicated that only one crematorium would be viable in Malta and hinted that the way forward was either a public-private partnership, or the issue of a tender.