May 14, 2018 [Time Of Malta] - Plans for a new oil storage terminal in Birżebbuġa have been turned down by the Planning Authority after years circling the drain.
The PA board on Thursday unanimously rejected the application, which had met with strong opposition from residents and the Birżebbuġa local council.
Applicant Yush M Sultan Al Junaidy had been seeking since 2010 to build a land-based oil storage terminal along jetties for large vessels, connecting pipe-lines, workshops, storage, offices and control rooms.
The facility would have taken up an area of nearly 125,000 square metres fronting Triq Kalafrana, on good quality arable land adjacent to the Freeport.
The local council had insisted Birżebbuġa could not absorb the impact of another oil terminal, noting that the effects of the existing facility nearby, and also the Freeport, had already been substantial.
Architect Carmel Cacopardo, representing the local council on the board on Thursday, took the PA to task for the “deplorable” eight-year delay in deciding the application and reiterated that increased development in the area would have a negative impact on residents.
The application had been stalled for about two years before yesterday’s decision because, under the Marsaxlokk Bay local plan, no development can be allowed in the area until a recreational site in Ħal Far was secured and a study was carried out on the need for warehousing space in the area.
The application had been heading for a refusal on the basis that it was premature. However, according to the PA case officer, the applicant had opted not to withdraw the plans due to ongoing litigation over the land.
The PA had also indicated at an early stage of processing that a master plan would be required to assess the proposal alongside a now-withdrawn application for an adjacent storage and distribution facility in light of the area’s present and future needs.
The PA case officer said a draft action plan was prepared but found to be unsatisfactory.
Moreover, no studies were ever carried out, as required by the Seveso Directive, on the possibility of harmful impact on the environment and safety of the area and its people.
The developers gave no further feedback to the PA after April 2016, despite indicating they would be proceeding with the application, and were not present on Thursday as the application was given the thumbs-down.
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