As an independent newspaper with a duty to hold the government – any government – to account, it is also incumbent upon us to give credit where credit is due.
The decision by the Minister for the Environment and Planning, Aaron Farrugia, to repeal the 2015 Fuel Services Station Policy and replace it with one that better protects the environment should be praised.
The 2015 policy had led to abuse in the approval of many controversial applications by placing fuel stations on virgin land.
The revised policy, which has been several years in the making, and under consultation for almost a year, makes a number of key changes, including stopping this abuse and imposing a cap on the overall number of fuel stations which will be permitted.
Among probably the most important of the changes is that the size of fuel stations in protected Outside Development Zone (ODZ) areas has been reduced by 66 per cent in size, cut from 3,000 square metres to 1,000 square metres including any amenities. The height of new fuel stations will not exceed seven metres.
Extensions of existing fuel stations located partially or fully in ODZ areas will not be permitted. Moreover, ODZ sites on agricultural, isolated or ‘sporadic’ land will not be considered under any circumstances, even if covered by a valid development permit or committed before 1967.
Henceforth, only the relocation of an existing fuel station will be considered, thus closing the door to new proposals.
An existing fuel station must be shown to be creating an adverse impact on the built environment before it will be considered for relocation.
ODZ sites in the close vicinity of industrial areas, SME areas and Areas of Containment will no longer qualify as acceptable locations for fuel stations. All open storage areas have also been removed.
A buffer zone is being reintroduced between any proposed fuel station and ‘vulnerable receptors’. Any relocation within 500 metres of an existing fuel station will not be considered.
Crucially, the new policy will be applicable to all pending applications, of which there were a number. The natural fear of environmentalists had been that by the time the new policy was introduced the government might have chosen to approve current applications under the existing policy, a move which would have been cynical and wrong.
But as the minister for planning and the environment for four months, Farrugia has been true to his intentions on taking over this vexed portfolio to achieve a better balance in safeguarding the environment.
When announcing the decision on the revised fuel station policy he underlined that “the government was laying the foundations for better planning”, taking into account both the planning sector and the overriding environmental considerations. He has made a commendable start in seeking better land-use planning by severely reining back the building of any more fuel stations in Malta.
But he must now be prepared to confront major environmental challenges ahead if, as suggested, it transpires that the government will be looking to the construction industry to lead Malta’s economy out of the inevitable consequences of the COVID-19 recession.
As environment minister, he must continue to ensure that the rampant construction excesses that marked the lead-up to the coronavirus pandemic are not repeated. A better balance needs to be struck that protects Malta’s quality of life as well as the economy.