Coalition urges PA to reject Żebbuġ solar farm as objections mount

A proposal to turn a large piece of agricultural land in Żebbuġ, Gozo, into a solar farm has drawn more than 180 objections, as a group of Gozitan NGOs called on the Planning Authority to reject the application.

The planning application (PA/03747/26) for the undeveloped site located on Ta' Kuljat was filed by Kurt Stephen Galea and architect Edwin Mintoff.

If approved, the application will see the installation of “environmentally friendly, ground-mounted” solar panels on a plot that covers 27,360 square metres of land outside the development zone located on Ta’ Kuljat in Żebbuġ.

The site, which lies outside the development zone, is almost the size of four full-size football pitches.

More than 180 objections have been submitted to the Planning Authority, with many objectors arguing that the proposal breaches policies regulating solar farm developments.

On Monday, the Coalition for Gozo said it strongly objected to the proposal, arguing that the project would be built directly on protected garrigue.

The coalition said the project risks scarring Ta' Kuljat Hill, damaging agricultural land, fragmenting an intact rural landscape and setting a dangerous precedent for Gozo's other flat-topped hills.

It said that, while it does not oppose renewable energy, solar farms should be located on rooftops, industrial areas, landfills, quarries, or other already disturbed sites, not on protected countryside. It added that the application should follow planning policies that safeguard sensitive landscapes.

"The applicant claims that no new access route is required, but the existing path is a narrow country path, less than one metre wide in places, and cannot accommodate construction traffic, heavy machinery, or the transport of photovoltaic panels," the coalition said.

"Any realistic access solution would require intervention on agricultural land and rural infrastructure. The proposal would also require cables, poles, trenching, and national grid-connection works, while security and maintenance lighting would introduce light pollution onto a currently rural hilltop."

The coalition said the application conflicts with planning policies protecting Areas of High Landscape Sensitivity, garrigue habitat, possible archaeological discoveries, hydrological systems, and rural land.

It added that it is also incompatible with the Solar Farm Policy 2021, which directs solar farms away from virgin land, agricultural land, open countryside, garrigue, and areas of high landscape sensitivity.

The Planning Authority has previously refused a comparable proposal, PA/03090/17, because it did not satisfy the Solar Farm Policy. 

The Coalition for Gozo ended its statement urging the public to submit an objection to the Planning Authority here. 

"The Coalition for Gozo urges the Planning Authority to reject PA/03747/26.The public is encouraged to submit an objection to the Planning Authority here.

Environmental NGO Flimkien Għal Ambjent Ahjar is also objecting to the plans. The NGO said the proposal is in direct breach of the Solar Farm Policy, which prohibits solar farm development on virgin land, agricultural land, garrigue and other environmentally sensitive areas. 

"Approving this application would create a dangerous precedent, opening Gozo’s protected countryside to widespread industrial development under the guise of green energy. Renewable energy is essential, but not at the irreversible expense of protected ODZ land that must be safeguarded for future generations," the NGO wrote.

Political party Momentum also called for the refusal of the solar farm and urged the public to voice their objections.

In a statement, the party said that although it fully supported the transition to renewable energy, this should not come at the expense of protected countryside.

"National planning policy clearly identifies more appropriate locations for large-scale solar projects, including rooftops, industrial areas, quarries and other already developed sites," Momentum said.

The party noted that the proposal appeared to go against the Gozo and Comino Local Plan, the Strategic Plan for Environment and Development (SPED), and the 2021 Solar Farm Policy, which specifically excludes large-scale solar farms on garrigue and open countryside.

"Rather than taking up pristine virgin land, Momentum is calling on the government to establish public-private partnerships to install solar farms on existing public infrastructure. Public buildings, schools, and large public car parks, such as those in Victoria, Marsalforn, and Xlendi. All sites offer significant potential to generate clean energy while also providing shaded parking, without sacrificing natural landscape."