Nature Trust (Malta) has called upon the Works Department to rectify the damage caused in the Wied Ghollieqa protected area by work carried out without Mepa permits.

During the summer of 2005 – more then a year ago – the Works Department removed part of the dam in the valley, since when the damage caused has been left unrepaired, claimed NTM.

In a statement, the NGO said that, today, the dam remains partly demolished, with the risk of further heavy rain destroying what is left of it – and causing flooding further down the valley into Sliema Road, Gzira.

Furthermore, it says, the way the dam has been left following the illegal work, has also put at risk a 15-year-old Holm Oak that is protected under LN 12, which could be carried away by the water, should the dam collapse.

Nature Trust president Vince Attard said that this is a typical example of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. Wied Ghollieqa is protected by Mepa as a Special Area of Conservation – at the same time as another government department has carried out half-completed work in the area without any coordination with Mepa, to the detriment of the natural environment of the site.

Following the initial work, NTM had reported the matter to Mepa and initial meetings were held to discuss the best way to repair the damage done in this protected area.

Discussions focused on the possible repair of the dam, and the removal of silt, as well as the possibility of Nature Trust helping the works Department to carry out conservation work on the disturbed site.

Despite all this, one year and three months later there has been no action from the two bodies concerned and no remedial work has been done. Any further delays can even have a negative effect on the habitat of the valley bed. Should the dam finally give way under the pressure of water caused by heavy rain, the habitat of the valley can be altered.

Mr Attard said that it is ironic that while NTM has been tied by various conditions for the protection of this valley by Mepa, the same Mepa has not taken action with the Works Department to ensure that the damage caused by the department is rectified with no further delay.

NTM ended by saying that Wied Ghollieqa is a protected site and deserved priority in such cases, especially from the authority responsible for the environment in the Maltese islands.