In three separate yet similar cases, the Mepa board yesterday decided at the last minute not to impose the dreaded Article 39A which calls for the withdrawal of a permit and the developers/farmers were persuaded to amend their applications.

The first case regarded a chicken slaughterhouse at Misrah is-Sinjura, Qrendi. The Environment Division asked for a reversal of a DCC approval since no screening for an EIA had been done.

Architect Robert Musumeci denied he had led the DCC up the wrong path: He had told the DCC that an EIA might be needed but he had argued and the DCC had agreed that no EIA was needed. The site had been used for animal slaughter since 1992 and has all the required sanitary permits in hand. Moreover, Prime Minister Gonzi had visited it in 2006 to see the modernisation of the process, required by EU legislation. But this EU legislation also asked for a wider area to be used. Mr Musumeci was supported by Prof. Ian Refalo.

Martin Seychell, Mepa’s Environment Director, explained that in EU directive there is a checklist of 27 questions which must be answered before it is decided whether an EIA is required or not.

On Mepa’s legal advisor, Ian Stafrace’s suggestion, the applicant will now submit a Project Description Statement so that the screening will be done to see whether an EIA is required or not.

In the second case, regarding a new cowshed at Ta’ Kanlata in Sannat, the DCC had not carried out an EIA and a third party claimed that fraudulent information was submitted in the application.

The objector, plus lawyer, turned up at the meeting and said that a narrow but essential link between the two parts of the site did not belong to the applicant but belonged to him. Lawyer Anton Refalo MP for the applicant replied that the objector was asking for Lm100,000 for this small strip of land and that anyway the applicant has a title to the land since it is on ‘qbiela’.

The whole ownership issue is now to be examined by the Mepa officials in view of these later revelations. Screening will also be done.

In the third case, regarding the relocation of a cattle farm to Tal-Kemuni at Gharb, it was again claimed that the DCC had done away with screening and an EIA.

At yesterday’s meeting, the applicant’s architect suggested trimming the site by 40cms on each side so that the area falls below the EIA level or not considering the landscaping but he was over-ruled.

The applicant said his present farm is in the middle of a residential area and he was being urged by the government to move to this new site.

Since the application for which Article 39A was being invoked was only an outline application, it was agreed that the applicant submits a full application as soon as possible and submits to the appropriate screening and EIA.