The Sant’ Antnin recycling plant in Marsascala seems to be shaping up nicely and is surely a massive improvement over the way things were just a couple of years ago.

This newspaper had then paid a visit to scrutinise the workings of the plant as it was – the findings were rather shocking. Reeking piles of rubbish festered on the floor as workers went round, mallet in hand, separating wood, plastic, paper and metal. It was all very haphazard with individuals sifting through the heaps to try and create some semblance of organisation.

The smell was also quite bad. There’s no mistaking the scent of rotting and decomposing waste. The smell would hit you as soon as you entered the gates of the facility.

Last week, the media was invited to the upgraded facility. In total, some e23 million are to be spent on making this a fully up-to-date facility. The new plant has a drop off zone, sorting machinery to separate aluminum from steel and iron, an air conditioned room to sift through clear and coloured plastic and a packer and shredder.

It might be hard for readers to equate this statement, but the sifting process looks much like what one sees on television when camera crews visit a modern conveyor belt production line.

The plant is not yet ready. Huge digestion tanks have been sunk into the ground to break down organic waste into soil enhancers and compost, while at the same time producing electricity to be fed back into the grid.

These “digestors” will have the capacity to take about one third of Malta’s organic waste, so there is more to be done. These tanks are completely sealed and have a reservoir under them to collect any run off waters that might have been contaminated, before it is treated.

What was perhaps most noticeable about this visit was that although it was carried out during actual operations, the smell that so many people kicked up a fuss about was practically inexistent. Of course, when one is in the drop off room, there is a bit of a whiff – but it is no worse than you might get from your own dustbin.

The government and WasteServ contend that they have found the source of this offensive smell and it is actually a dump that was closed in 1979. In an attempt to reduce and eliminate this smell, WasteServ is to implement the same technology at Maghtab to bore into the mound and extract gases (the smelly ones) which result from decomposition.

This must all be taken into the context of the EU’s Petition Council throwing out an appeal by the Committee Against Sant’ Antnin. The Council found that the government had been well within regulations in upgrading the plant.

This newspaper is of the belief that far too often, the general public is guilty of knee-jerk reactions. People foretold doom, gloom and reeking smells from Sant’ Antnin before it was even up and running.

Up and running it now is, albeit not at full capacity, but the results are there to see. It is no Garden of Eden, but it is certainly not reminiscent of Maghtab as it was just two years ago. Of course, it is natural for people not to want such facilities in their own back yard, but sometimes, such developments need to be seen and fully understood before people jump to conclusions.

The government has already announced that it will give the Park of Friendship free steam to heat its pools once the digestion tanks start generating electricity. Perhaps if some sort of offers could be extended to Marsascala residents, it might serve to build, or in some cases, rebuild bridges. The writing is on the wall, the digestion tank capacity needs to be upped by two thirds. The question now is, where will the new tanks and generators be sited?