The Sliema Residents Association has urged the locality's local councillors to back a motion for a carrying capacity study to be carried out.

The association welcomed "the importance finally being given to carrying capacity Studies. The term carrying capacity refers to an assessment of the number of individuals or activities that an area can sustain without causing environmental degradation and erosion of residents' quality of life."

"In 1992 the MEPA Local Plan had identified Sliema as having reached saturation and decreed that converting more houses into apartment blocks should stop. Instead, Sliema's over-development, over-commercialization and over-tourism increased exponentially, straining drainage and power infrastructure, resulting in traffic jams, drainage overflows into the sea, and repeated power cuts leading to reduced quality of life, environmental harm, and further strain on public services."

"At the next Sliema Local Council meeting on Thursday 29th May, a ground-breaking motion proposed by PL Councillor Ryan Borg to commission a carrying capacity study will be raised. This had been proposed by Astrid Vella (FAA) at Sliema residents' protest at Fond Għadir, Sliema in August 2023 organised by the fledgling Sliema Residents Association (SRA). This proposal was echoed in the PN Local Councils election manifesto which called for carrying capacity studies to be conducted by local councils in each town.  "

on Tuesday, Bernard Grech criticized "developments without a plan, trying to "catch up" rather than plan ahead" adding "we believe things must be done through planning. And in order to plan effectively, you first need to understand the needs, not act blindly," the association said.

"It therefore came as a surprise to hear PN Deputy Mayor Anton Debono claim on the radio that the Council can't afford such a study as its €1,073,118 working capital is already allocated to other projects."

"It is only once Sliema's actual carrying capacity is established that one can introduce vital mitigating measures to ensure a decent quality of life. This would include urban planning and sustainable development practices, regulating construction, improving infrastructure, cleanliness and garbage collection while managing tourism, in order to help restore some balance and relieve residents of the long list of civic inconveniences."

"The Planning Authority continues to issue permits for replacing traditional architectural gem houses with blocks of apartments, large construction projects such as Townsquare, height extensions to traditional architectural landmarks, multi-use towers and hotels. All of these permits are being granted without considering whether transport, water, electricity and drains infrastructure can cope of the additional demands. Moreover, while many towns and cities across Europe are clamping down on short-let tourist accommodations, Sliema has filled with 737 registered tourist units, while Air BnB lists 1,400 units in Sliema alone," the association said.

"All this means that Sliema's population which doubled from 13,000 in 2011 to 24,000 in 2024, doubles again during peak tourist months.  Considering that Malta's average population density is around 1,600 per square km, and the EU average is around 100 per square km, it's clear that Sliema's rate of 20,000 residents per sq km plus tourists, has serious implications for the health, quality of life and living environment of Sliema residents."

"One cannot overstate the importance of having this Sliema-dedicated carrying capacity Study conducted as a basis for future strategic planning for a town strained by uncontrolled over-development. The Sliema Residents Association therefore urges councillors to unite behind this motion, and vote unanimously for a carrying capacity study to assess Sliema's situation and finally identify measures to improve residents' quality of life," the association said.