A number of activists involved in Kamp Emerġenza Ambjent are holding an action to denounce the Environment and Resources Authority's (ERA) role in the Planning Authority's approval of the Mrieħel Towers and the TownSquare developments. Concerned citizens are participating in this action alongside Moviment Graffitti, Friends of the Earth and Flimkien għall-Ambjent Aħjar. The protest is being held outside ERA building at Marsa.
The activists said that the massive high-rises which have just been approved will only benefit a few wealthy individuals at the expense of the environment and our quality of life. These enormous towers, which were approved in the absence of serious studies and holistic plans, will exacerbate an already dire situation in relation to congestion, sewage and pollution. Kamp Emerġenza Ambjent activists are disappointed that in these cases, ERA has absconded from its duty to safeguard the environment.
They said that the responsibility for ERA's toothlessness lies primarily in the MEPA demerger. This demerger is being touted by the Government as an achievement in the environmental sphere, when in fact it simply relegated the environmental dimension to a body with very little powers and resources, further diminishing the already limited weight the environment carried under the MEPA regime. However, it is of concern that ERA even failed to use what little weight it has.
Addressing the demonstration, Andre Callus spoke of the nine months since the MEPA demerger, and how not one single appeal has been made since the ERA was set up. He slammed Malta’s institutions for their lack of strength and said that the current situation is a threat to Malta’s future.
Placards and signs read ‘dust and congestion, thanks to Tumas and Gasan’ – referring to the Tumas and Gasan Group, the investors behind both high-rise buildings.
Sacks of dust and wheelbarrows were strewn over the entrance of the ERA building, to highlight the upcoming disruptions that will be caused by the construction of the towers.
The demonstration blocked off the entry/exit point of the ERA building, with many surprised workers having to walk through the crowd and sacks of dust in order to enter the building.
Police emerged on the scene due to a car within the ERA premises needing to exit, but was unable to due to the protest.
“The voice of the environment has completely disappeared. This is a threat to Malta’s future. Who among us has a pair, should stick up for the environment,” Mr Callus said to the crowd.
In comments with this newsroom, the group’s spokesperson Robert Louis Fenech spoke about an array of environmental issues which have yet to be tackled by the ERA. He spoke of a deteriorating environmental situation, and the need for the public to prioritise the environment for the sake of Malta’s future.
Mr Callus said that when a Chairperson of the ERA is unable to attend a PA hearing, laws must be changed in order for a substitute to be allowed to take his place. He called the MEPA demerger a big “lie” because it has not strengthened the environmental voice, instead it has become irrelevant. This sentiment echoes a letter sent to the government by the Commissioner for the Environment and Planning, David Pace, where he slammed the Mepa demerger, blaming it for a lack of protection of the environment that followed the demerger.
Photos by Jonathan Borg