In what was one of the stealthiest manoeuvres orchestrated by this government, with the active participation of the private sector, the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects, Ian Borg proposed motion 515 on the transfer of an area of land in Marsa to Ricasoli Port Facility, owned by the Marsa-based Falzon Group.

Dated April 20, 2021, this motion also entails Ricasoli Port Facility’s taking over of the Mediterranean Offshore Bunkering Company Ltd’s personnel and operations, a very sweet privatisation deal for Falzon, which can now count on the strategic advantage of having all their operations in Marsa.

And all this means, by extension, that massive tanks used for oil cleaning will be moved right into the heart of Marsa.

This motion definitely merited more attention, not only in the media but mostly at a political level. Residents from Marsa, left fuming by the inaction of their district representatives, complained about being forgotten and ignored. It appears that the Marsa local council only found out about the plans to relocate these tanks through the media and also received short shrift from the concerned parliamentarians.

Two Nationalist MPs, Claudio Grech and Mario de Marco, had recently shared their disapproval of the project via respective Facebook posts but, since then, nothing more than a whimper has been heard.

In addition to the lack of transparency about the transfer of land and, subsequently, of oil cleaning operations to Marsa, the government has so far held back from presenting, and maybe far less commissioning, studies about the impact of these tanks in Marsa. This is nothing new when it comes to dumping such projects on to residents, a bit like when George Pullicino kept the EIA about the Sant’Antnin waste treatment plant locked in his drawer.

Presumably, studies will be presented at a ‘later stage’, meaning that the Planning Authority will have already started processing Ricasoli’s application. Again, as previous sagas have shown, this means residents can only contest the plans when it’s too late: there is little time to fully grasp the implications of the move and mount an opposition.

There has been, in fact, no hint of any consultation forthcoming; the government has dug in its heels and is ready to plonk yet another, dangerous monster into Marsa: huge structures which pose clear health risks to residents.

For example, studies commissioned by the government should clearly question the potential risks of explosions in the area, as well as the effects of fossil fuels on the quality of the air in Marsa (which, as it happens, is a largely industrial town surrounded by motorways). The fact that Marsa lacks open spaces and is built in a rather narrow, closed manner increases the potential for tragic accidents.

Besides residents and schools, there are hundreds of workers employed in offices nearby, including a telecoms giant situated close to the proposed site on Spencer Hill. Without studies on health impacts of both residents and commuters, the government would simply be taking a very costly gamble on the lives of Marsa residents.

While the move from Ricasoli in itself is not objectionable – we, too, believe the fort should be rehabilitated and opened to the public – a densely populated and built up area is not the right place to host these tanks. The lack of studies, EIAs and the consideration of alternative sites leaves a lot of questions to be asked. Starting with why all the secrecy and followed by are these operations really necessary.

All this means, by extension, that massive tanks used for oil cleaning will be moved right into the heart of Marsa- Wayne Flask

Left alone against an oil giant, there is little consolation for a community that has endured the burden of Malta’s most polluting economic activities since the beginning of time. Besides being betrayed by the silence of their own district MPs, it appears the prime minister will, once again, go with the wishes of Borg, ignoring the potential risks and refusing to study alternatives. A pattern we’ve seen elsewhere, countless times.

Besides industrial activity and pollutants, Marsa has had to deal with decades of neglect. And it may come as a surprise to those who haven’t really followed our stance on migration but we also disagree with the way hundreds of migrants have been made to reside in Marsa. Successive administrations have grossly mismanaged the migration issue, leaving Marsa to deal with the brunt of a thoughtless policy that will not only hinder attempts at integration – which have worked in other towns – but cause further unrest among the local community while migrants become increasingly marginalised.

The government cannot sweep this other issue under the carpet and it’s interesting how nobody other than the head of Labour’s Ideat think tank had said this much in 2015. Today, Aaron Farrugia is the Minister for Planning and the Environment and also an MP elected from the first district. While his stance on this relocation proposed by his hyperactive colleague Borg is yet to be made public, we believe it is high time for a regeneration of Marsa.

But by regeneration, I don’t mean gentrification projects which create landscaped open spaces, scores of eateries and a fake sake of cleanliness and security. Regeneration means creating a better quality of life for the residents themselves including safer, cleaner air. Therefore, attempts at ‘compromise’ between the oil tanks and some new promenade are to be denounced as poisonous carrots.

For a town that has only recently been rid of its power station, the presence of these potentially-lethal tanks will be a new slap in the face.

No multimillion garden decked in maintenance-costly urban walls can cover this fresh wound.

Wayne Flask member, Moviment Graffitti