Nature Trust (Malta), Flimkien ghal Ambjent Ahjar, Ramblers’ Association of Malta and BirdLife Malta call upon the Planning Appeals Board to reject the appeal lodged by the developer in connection with a new quarry being proposed at Wied Moqbol in Zurrieq.

The application “To relocate hardstone quarry (No. 9 and No. 2) from Hagar Qim to Wied Moqbol” had been refused by Mepa in 2005. The proposal is in breach of the Structure Plan and is located next to a protected Special Area of Conservation – a proposed NATURA 2000 Site of Community Importance, the NGOs said.

Wied Moqbol was identified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) of EU importance. This area along with the adjacent Hal Far cliffs are the breeding grounds of 500-800 pairs of Cory’s Shearwaters (Calonectris diomedea) and 100-150 pairs of Yelkouan Shearwaters (Puffinus yelkouan). Malta hosts approximately 10 per cent of the world population of Yelkouan Shearwaters for which reason EU Life funds have been sponsoring a conservation project run by BirdLife to protect these species at Rdum tal-Madonna. Other important breeding species in the area include the Blue Rock Thrush (Monticola soitarius) and Spectacled Warbler (Sylvia conspicillata).

The NGOs feel that the unsustainable nature of this development and the many permits granted in the past to quarries in the area should prove enough reason to refuse any more heavy impacts in the area.