18-metre tower approved in ‘high landscape value’ area

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) has ditched a Planning Directorate recommendation by approving an 18-metre high telephony tower set on the Mellieha ridge, on the road leading to Manikata – the directorate had made a clear recommendation to reject the development.

The 15-metre high mast belonging to Vodafone will be put up on a new three metre high room set in a 3,000 square metre field. 

The case officer report unambiguously concluded that the development was unacceptable as it is located on a scheduled Area of High Landscape, an Area of Ecological Importance and a Site of Scientific Importance.

The development was deemed to have a negative visual impact on highly scenic views.

Between 2006 and 2009 a number of applications for new communications towers were submitted but MEPA wisely took a decision to postpone all applications until a master plan identifying suitable sites for telephony towers was formulated and the Malta Communications Authority (MCA) and MEPA are still in the process of finalising this master plan.

But some months ago the MCA submitted a draft master plan on which MEPA expressed a number of concerns.

The case officer report reveals that the MCA had previously identified a site in Triq il-Mellieha located 350 metres away from the approved site. 

But last February the MCA informed architect Robert Musumeci, who represented Vodafone, that it had no difficulty in including the site proposed by Vodafone in its master plan, arguing that this site is “slightly better” as it is located further away from the residential area.

In May 2013 MEPA had also approved the development of a 30-metre telecommunications hub at id-Dwejra, limits of Rabat.

On Friday MEPA also approved a 10-metre high mobile telephony tower owned by Vodafone set on the roof of the Labour Party’s headquarters in Hamrun, which is located in a residential area.

The permit for this tower was issued in 2009 and expired last January – such permits are valid only for five years. 

But thanks to a legal notice approved last year MEPA is bound to renew any permit issued after August 2006 and renewed before March 2015.