PA begins process to take tract of land in Bulebel out of development zone

The Planning Authority has started the process to remove a large tract of land in Bulebel from the development zone. 

The rezoning of the land, a 96,000 square metre area in Żejtun known as Wied iż-Żrinġ, was announced by Prime Minister Robert Abela on Tuesday. Abela said it was the first decision taken by the new cabinet. 

In a statement on Friday, the PA said it had published a Partial Review of the Strategic Plan for Environment and Development (SPED) 2015 concerning the area, following instructions received from government in accordance with Article 44(2) of the Development Planning Act. 

SPED, the Strategic Plan for Environment and Development, is Malta’s overarching planning policy framework, setting out how land and sea areas should be used and protected. It guides decisions on development, conservation, infrastructure and environmental protection. 

 “The objective of this partial review is to exclude the identified land at Bulebel from the Industrial Development Zone and redesignate it as land Outside the Development Zone (ODZ).” 

The PA said the review was being undertaken in recognition of the area’s high agricultural, ecological and cultural value. The proposed changes seek to ensure the long-term protection of the site by removing it from the Industrial Development Zone and safeguarding it from incompatible uses and other potential adverse impacts. 

“The Planning Authority encourages all interested parties to review the proposals and submit their feedback during the consultation window.  

More details about the consultation may be viewed on the PA’s website. 

In 2024, NGO Wirt iż-Żejtun urged the authorities to amend local plans, six years after the government vowed not to expand the industrial zone into those rural areas. 

Wied iż-Żrinġ was earmarked for future expansion back in the 1980s. It retained that designation when planners updated local plans in 2006, though a provision called for “further study to determine the agricultural value of the area before any additional industrial development can be permitted.” 

That notwithstanding, in 2010 the land in question was placed under the responsibility of Malta Industrial Parks (now INDIS) and in late 2015 farmers in the Wied iż-Żrinġ area received eviction notices, giving them one month to vacate their land. 

The notices sparked public uproar and a years-long battle by Żejtun residents and activists to drop the plan. 

In 2018, the government did just that. That decision was followed by a meeting of parliament’s environment and planning committee in April 2018, during which members called on the government to amend the area’s local plan to make the area outside the development zone. 

Then, in May 2024, Abela told Labour Party activists that the government would amend the 2006 local plans to protect the agricultural land, a promise that has now been made again.