Calling it ECOHIVE will not change the Magħtab incinerator’s effect on residents’ health. The plan is to construct two incinerators burning over 400 tonnes of black bag waste every single day.
Questions about the incinerator’s impact on residents have remained largely unanswered. In fact, a public meeting by the ERA intended to quell the concerns of residents of several towns and villages in the centre and north of Malta has only served to fuel more doubts about this project, which is threatening to affect the health of thousands for decades to come.
Residents of Naxxar, St Paul’s Bay, Għargħur, Mosta, Madliena, Attard, St Julian’s, Lija, Balzan, Iklin, Birkirkara, Msida, Swieqi, Pembroke, Gżira, Sliema, Rabat, Mġarr and many other nearby localities have justifiably grown more worrisome, as assurances for their health have not been forthcoming.
As an elected representative of the Maltese people in the European Parliament, I have taken the initiative to ask some pertinent questions to the competent authorities, in particular the ERA and the Planning Authority, in accordance with the Aarhus Convention on Environmental Information, which guarantees every European the right to request full information about any decision that may affect their health.
Unfortunately, the information and documentation available so far regarding the environmental impact of the project leaves much to be desired. Published documentation lack sufficient detail on the impact on residents’ health. I highlight that this impact on residents is a fundamental criterion within the context of European Directive EC 2000/76 on the incineration of waste and other applicable EU laws related to this project.
The ERA itself stated that the project is expected to produce particulate matter that can disperse over a significant six-kilometre radius. That is a very considerable chunk of the Maltese territory, considering that the island is merely 13 kilometres wide. However, the ERA has fallen short of providing the necessary peace of mind to families on the precautions it will be expecting the operators to adopt and what policies it will be putting in place to safeguard the health of thousands of residents in the affected area.
It is pertinent to ask whether the ERA conducted a study on the health impact of emissions of particulate matter and nanoparticles, which, according to European documentation, are particularly difficult to contain through filters, and other emission reduction measures.
Directive EC 2000/76 obliges the competent authorities overseeing incinerator projects to establish air quality monitoring systems and carry out regular sampling in all affected areas, or the six-kilometre radius already established by the ERA itself. From the documentation provided, it is not clear how it intends to fulfil this obligation.
Unfortunately, this question grows more pertinent in the context of another separate yet related ongoing controversy – that of a tarmac production plant in the centre of the island, whereby the ERA unashamedly declared it lacked the means to guarantee regular and systematic air quality monitoring and sampling, much to everyone’s shock.
This is not a situation we can expect residents to accept.
On a related note, what mechanisms will the competent authorities be installing to immediately suspend the operation of the incinerator, and impose serious penalties, as soon as it is detected that the stipulated emission limits, established by EU law, are exceeded?
The plan is to construct two incinerators burning over 400 tonnes of black bag waste every single day- Peter Agius
It will not come as a surprise to anyone, even the least technical, that there is a direct correlation between the volume of waste processed in the incinerator and the level and nature of emissions produced. In fact, if an incinerator is operated within its designed limits, it is likely to produce fewer emissions. However, and this is where we start seeing red lights flashing, if the plant is overloaded with more volume than it was originally designed to handle it is guaranteed to start producing significantly more emissions, as well as harmful particulate matter.
Unfortunately, we feel compelled to make this point, as we are currently experiencing a similar situation in an unrelated field – that of the treatment of sewage. Following an investment of no less than €70 million in EU funds, the plan was to treat all sewage produced in Malta and Gozo before it is released into our waters, to make sure that the release is not harmful to the environment, while protecting our unique resource that is our beautiful blue sea.
Sadly, due to a lack of long-term vision by our authorities, the treatment plants are constantly being overloaded, resulting in the continuous release of untreated or inadequately treated sewage into the sea.
Can you blame residents for not taking the government’s word that they will operate the incinerators within standards when they see flagrant breaches of EU standards wherever they look?
So, within this horrifying context and the authorities’ shameful track record, it is justified for families to grow uneasy. How will the authorities reassure residents that the operation of the incinerator will comply with strict limits without increasing the impact on residents?
The documentation presented and the public meeting with residents have not clarified how the authorities will monitor and regularly sample dioxin emissions. Dioxin in the air can be particularly harmful to residents exposed to the effects of the incinerator, and the risk of higher emissions increases if there is overloading and incomplete pyrolysis, which occurs when the incinerator is overloaded and begins producing emissions beyond its technical specifications.
I ask how the competent authorities plan to prevent, manage and avoid this risk.
The Aarhus Convention guarantees EU citizens the right to participate in decision-making processes that affect their health, as well as access to justice regarding any decisions that affect them.
As a member of the European Parliament, I will continue to use all the tools at my disposal to ensure that families affected by this proposed project will be given the necessary peace of mind.
Peter Agius is a Nationalist Party MEP.
kellimni@peteragius.eu