Five environmental NGOs expressed concern on Monday that the Planning Authority has not outrightly refused an application for a swimming pool in Marsalforn Valley at the back of a seven-storey block of flats belonging to construction magnate Joseph Portelli and his partners.
"The swimming pool at the side of the valley is not only destructive in its own right; being situated in the lush valley, it would also set a precedent that would be disastrous, as it would give other developments along the ridge grounds for swimming pool permits," the NGOs said.
The application for the pool is on Triq Marsalforn, Xagħra.
This point, they added, had already been made by various objectors to the proposed development, including Xagħra Local Council, the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, and the Environment and Resources Authority.
The Planning Authority’s own technical report also recommended refusal.
Yet the Planning Commission instead asked the developer to make minor tweaks to the plan, and will now decide on the application on Tuesday.
"If granted, this would set a new level of planning outrage when it comes to permitting development in sensitive Outside Development Zone areas," the NGOs said.
"After the political party elected to government promised in its manifesto to protect the peripheries of villages from destructive developments, granting a permit tomorrow would be politically damaging and send the wrong message. It is crucial to translate promises into action, particularly in a case such as this one that should have already been refused given the obvious breaches of planning policies, the damage to natural habitats and valleys in Gozo, and the fact that the Planning Authority itself recommended refusal," the NGOs added.
"The country cannot go on like this, falling to one low after another when it comes to development. It is outrageous that the Planning Authority still finds it so hard to protect sensitive landscapes situated in the supposedly protected Outside Development Zone even as the government itself promises to do so. This planning application should have never got this far in the first place."
The NGOs said they were also very concerned by the feeble representation of the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA). Although ERA had called for a refusal, it had not insisted on the protection of the habitat, which is comprehensively threatened.
The statement was signed by Din l-Art Ħelwa Għawdex, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Għawdix, Moviment Graffitti and Wirt Għawdex.