We are all proud of our roots. When we travel to other countries, we boast of where we come from. Many times we do so with nostalgia. Those of us who had the privilege of being brought up in a rural environment feel this nostalgia with a stronger passion.

Iwas brought up in the beautiful village of Naxxar. Today this village has become a town. The narrow streets are still there. Many houses have been restored and renovated, though the Naxxarin who inhabited these houses are long gone. The houses of character are among the most expensive properties in the country.

A very particular street is Triq il-Markiz Scicluna. Still part of the village core, this narrow street goes from the piazza in the heart of Naxxar to the Trade Fair Grounds. Originally, the Trade Fair Grounds were the garden of the magnificent Palazzo Parisio, which is right opposite the main church: a huge, magnificent building with outstanding grounds.

For many years, the former garden was used as a commercial area. I remember the summer evenings spent at the Trade Fair, collecting magazines, stickers, and more elaborate give-aways. Sadly, when the Trade Fair ceased, the enormous area was left, abandoned, in a sorry state. I expected that sooner or later this area would be up for development.

My serious concern is directed to what is happening in the whole area and not just the Trade Fair Grounds themselves. There are at least six massive projects which will leave a huge impact. Some of the projects are still on paper, others are in progress, while work on others has been concluded.

These projects are:

(1) The obvious development of the Trade Fair Grounds;

(2) the development of the Trade Fair Grounds car park which extends to Triq il-Markiz Scicluna (parts of which form part of the Urban Conservation Area);

(3) the development of another pocket of land in Triq Santa Marija (also adjacent to part of the Trade Fair Grounds);

(4) a massive residential development in the area of Triq ilMarkiz Censu Depiro and Triq il-Konti Manduca;

(5) another residential development in Triq is-Senaskalk (a few streets away from the Trade Fair Grounds); and

(6) a Government project adjacent to the Trade Fair Grounds car park which will become a “Reach Community Hub.”

Residents in this area are very concerned about overdevelopment and the total disrespect for the already existing structures in the neighbourhood. The proposed high rises will continue to ruin the old village skyline. They will overload the locality with traffic. There is much anxiety for the quality of life of the residents while the projects are under construction.

Since these massive developments are touching the old part of the village core, which is protected by Urban Conservation legislation, the projects are already creating inconvenience and huge challenges for the residents of the areas.

In a recent incident, in one of the urban conservation streets, a large construction truck knocked down a balcony while driving through. The streets are too narrow for such vehicles. This was a one-off incident but it could definitely increase if traffic management is not given priority when the construction work commences on some of these projects.

Sadly, Naxxar is also under another environmental threat. The Magħtab area, which forms part of Naxxar, has been an environmental scar for decades. While efforts have been made along the years to mitigate the damages caused by the huge volumes of uncontrolled waste dumped in the area, the current situation leaves much to be desired.

The Magħtab “mountain” remains an eye sore. It’s a constant reminder to all of us of how, as a nation, we failed to reduce, reuse, and recycle the waste we generated.

It must be said that the Sant’ Antnin recycling plant in Marsascala helped with the burden-sharing of the waste generated. Although it was not the solution to all waste management issues, it was putting our country on the right track.

However, after this plant was destroyed in a massive fire, it became very evident that the current government had no plan B on what to do with our waste. Space at the engineered landfill at Ta’ l-Għallis soon ran out. After a strong educational campaign on waste separation, people soon found out that their efforts had been thrown to the wind because the separated waste was being mixed again in a rush to cover up the lack of vision in this delicate area.

Now, the government has finally woken up to a horrific reality. Doing nothing is no longer an option.

The ‘solution’ being sold to us is beautifully packaged. The Ecohive complex is described as “the largest ever investment in the waste management sector that will drive Malta towards a circular economy.”

Unfortunately, in spite of all the fancy promises, to date we have no information about the impact assessment of this major project. All residents of Naxxar (including Magħtab, Salina, and Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq), St Paul’s Bay, Burmarrad and other localities, including Pembroke and Sliema, are very concerned about this project. The presence of four large incinerators might provide a solution to the management of waste which is completely out of hand — but at what price?

Sadly, Naxxar is taking the brunt of unplanned development and lack of vision in waste management. The well-being of all the residents, young and old is a huge responsibility. It deserves respect and serious attention.