Wied Inċita has, in the past, served as a government nursery. Many an indigenous species of trees were propagated from local stock in Wied Inċita, which, at that time, was managed by the Urban and Rural Landscaping Section of the Department of Agriculture.
In 2002, it was handed over to a public private consortium – the Environment Landscaping Consortium – with a yearly budget of Lm8 million. Several plans, ideas, suggestions were forthcoming from this consortium, such as a “traditional-style citrus grove, an ornamental orchard, a fountain and a little kiosk where people can relax and have coffee”.
And it was also proposed that the valley at Wied Inċita would be rehabilitated and a bridge built over the water course. A souvenir shop and a seating area were also to be provided.
A look at Wied Inċita today reveals that all this was just paper talk and, not surprisingly, nothing materialised. This natural asset, which can contribute so much ecologically, socially, economically, educationally and scientifically, was, and still is, mismanaged and misused and, now, this open green space is in an abandoned state.
The prime minister has recently announced that the open green space at Wied Inċita will “be turned into a public open space within a few months”, and that “Project Green, the State agency tasked with urban greening projects, is now working to turn land in the area into a place that the broader public could enjoy”.
This is welcome news. The restoration of this open green space into a natural park has been suggested, proposed and asked for by several environmental NGOs and other individuals during the years that this open green area was being mismanaged.
One has, however, to ask what one understands by a “green open space” and a “park”. With hindsight, such parks and green open spaces have all been ‘adorned’ with additional concrete and building construction, especially when the monstrosity planned for the already green open space at San Anton Gardens comes to mind.
Yes, let Wied Inċita be a new park where the public can relax in the natural environment and benefit from the pure clean air provided by the surrounding biodiversity.
Yes, let the public be able to fully benefit from the free natural therapy of this park, where people would be able to lie and stretch on the natural grass, get in closer contact with nature, devoid of buildings and concrete paths, which daily haunt everyday life in the overpopulated urban environment so polluted by the emissions of burnt fossil fuel.
Let Wied Inċita be a new park where the public can relax in the natural environment and benefit from the pure clean air provided by the surrounding biodiversity
Yes, let Wied Inċita’s biodiversity offer free natural therapy to the public to combat the physical and psychological stress that people are engulfed in their daily urban life.
Yes, let such a park offer peace of mind where the commercial construction industry is nowhere to be seen.
Yes, let this new park offer opportunities for the public, including visits by schoolchildren to get their hands dirty and learn how to propagate local flora from local indigenous species.
Wied Inċita has a very few structures, thus eliminating the need of building new ones. These existent buildings in the park can be converted into educational units such as a small audiovisual centre, where the public can look closer and be further informed about the rich biodiversity of our country.
Certainly one of the existing buildings in the park can be converted into a tearoom and another a public convenience for the benefit of the visiting public.
Unfortunately, no plans, no public consultation, no indication of how this project is going to be conducted have been made public, so none of the stakeholders have had the opportunity to discuss, suggest, comment and provide professional data on this new park.
One would be justified in thinking that this may be another project where the construction sector has the main say and the biodiversity in the park does not even figure on the agenda. There are a number of such ‘Project Green’ projects, such as the one earmarked for San Anton Gardens, which are going to decrease the open green space the gardens offer.
What is the use of first planning and executing such a new park project and then opening public consultations? Is not public consultation a requisite when spending EU funds?
In the absence of such consultations, it would be better to leave Wied Inċita as it is today, neglected and misused, than to alter it without any vision and knowledge of a real natural park, which would further destroy the biodiversity in the area.
Wied Inċita can wait for a future professional qualified person who will put biodiversity at the top of the agenda and building construction at the very bottom. A new park that contributes to the ecological, social and economic aspects will be a true asset that can be offered to meet long awaited demands from the public.
The publication of plans on which works will be carried out will give a better picture of what is going to happen before it is cast in stone.
Alfred Baldacchino is a former assistant director of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority.