Siġġiewi local council warns ‘sewage’ is flowing out of new social housing block
'Vehicles passing through contaminated water cause it to splash onto pedestrians'
Updated 9am with Malita reply
The Siġġiewi local council has raised concerns over the “significant quantities” of foul water frequently flowing out of a recently built €13 million social housing block on Dun Manwel Zammit Street.
In a legal letter sent to the Housing Authority and other government entities, the council says the discharge, which appears to be mechanically pumped from basement reservoirs, carried a strong smell of “sewage or drainage effluent”.
This gives rise to serious public health, environmental protection and sanitary concerns, the council said.
Vehicles passing through the contaminated water cause it to splash onto people, other cars and buildings, resulting in the spread of filth, offensive odours and “possible contaminants”, the council said.
The council said the problem has been persisting over a prolonged period and cannot be regarded as an isolated occurrence.
“Despite the fact that several reports and complaints have already been lodged, the nuisance continues unabated,” the council said.
The council demanded information from the authorities about the nature and source of the discharged water, what measures had been taken to address it and the concrete remedial action yet to be taken to resolve it.
“In view of the recurrent nature of the problem and its impact on public health and public amenity, this matter is to be treated as urgent,” the council’s lawyer Richard Sladden wrote.
Siġġiewi mayor Julian Borg said on social media that the council had been promised action back in January, yet, the problem has persisted.
On Friday morning, the parliamentary secretariat responsible for housing told Times of Malta that Malita was "presently establishing the facts and liaising with the relevant entities in order to gather further information and determine the details surrounding the situation".
The alleged source of the discharge is the Silvio Parnis social housing block, which was at the centre of gerrymandering claims in the run-up to the 2024 local council elections.
A total of 99 people were found to be registered as living in the block, despite it being unfinished, in what was a suspected bid to boost the Labour vote in Siġġiewi.
The Nationalist Party has successfully petitioned a court to reverse the registration.
A police investigation was also ordered by the courts into who helped facilitate what the PN called “electoral fraud”.