Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar (FAA) and the Gozitan NGO Save Ramla have welcomed a decision by the Mepa Appeals Tribunal turning down an appeal by a developer who sought to develop villas and apartments along one side of the valley overlooking Ramla Bay in Gozo.

The developer had sought a permit for a complex of 23 villas with pools ont he site of the old Ulysses Lodge.

In a statement, the NGOs recalled how the project had originally been granted a permit by Mepa, but following a public outcry, the authority revoked the permit as the developers had failed to declare that their site included a parcel of public land.

“The refusal of this appeal is of huge significance, as reinstating the permit would have opened the whole Ramla hillside to development," the NGOs said.

“Save Ramla, FAA and other environment NGOs were committed to ensuring that the most iconic unspoilt beach on the Maltese islands remains unbuilt due to the existence of archaeological remains and also because parts of Ramla l-Ħamra make up a Natura 2,000 site because of the presence of endangered plants growing on the unique sand dunes at Ramla.”

The NGOs said they were renewing their appeal for public donations to help them meet the expenses they had  incurred in this campaign.

A direct debit donation can be made at http://www.faa.org.mt/donate Bank of Valletta account no: 400-1851-6481 or HSBC Bank Malta account no: 061-253-217-050 or by credit card on https://faa.trolleymania.com/search-results?k=Ramla .