An application to turn a traditional Maltese hut built on virgin land in Wardija into a pumproom has drawn objections from the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage and Din L-Art Ħelwa.
They noted that although the original proposal to demolish the girna and rebuild it with a higher ceiling was dropped, the current proposal to use it as a pump room was unacceptable.
The application, outside the development zone in Safsafa tal-Wied, on the outskirts of St Paul’s Bay, also seeks a permit to construct a reservoir with an overlying rural room 21 metres from the girna.
“The superintendence objects to the proposed demolition of this girna, which is an example of traditional Maltese rural huts, and thus of cultural heritage value. The existing girna is to be preserved and retained in its current location,” it said as it objected to the proposal.
Din L-Art Ħelwa added: “The use of the girna as a pump room is contrary to its value as a building with cultural heritage value and should be refused on this basis alone.”
On the request for the construction of an agricultural store, the case officer noted that according to rural policies, farmers holding between four and 10 tumoli of land may have a store not larger than 15 square metres. Four tumoli are equal to almost 4,500 square metres.
The land in question in Wardija measures 3,081 square metres which is just under three tumoli – not all of it arable land.
To justify the construction of a room in the middle of undisturbed land, the applicant, Simon Attard, presented documentation of fields registered in his name in Mellieħa. But the case officer observed that the five parcels of land in Mellieħa all had direct access to an already established road and seemed a more suitable location for the construction of an agricultural store.
The Agricultural Advisory Committee noted in its submissions on the application that the proposed agricultural store cannot be favourably considered since no proof of arable farming was submitted. Moreover, it insisted that the girna is used as a store room.
The Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) also objected to the proposed store and reservoir due to their impact on the site and the surrounding area. ERA is also concerned with how this field would be accessed during both construction and operational phase.
The application, PA 1872/21, was filed shortly after a country lane in Wardija was covered in concrete by Infrastructure Malta, leading to a sudden influx of applications for land divisions, with ERA expressing concern about the future of the highly sensitive area.
ERA said it was worried that such applications were contributing to “unnecessary rural land take-up” and the formalisation of sites in ODZ areas.