An inquiry into a fire which three years ago had gutted the Sant’Antin recycling plant Marsascala is still pending, the Justice Minister said in parliament on Tuesday.

Edward Zammit Lewis was asked on the matter by Opposition MP Claudette Buttigieg, who asked for a copy of the inquiry if it had been concluded. If not, she asked the minister for an indication on when the investigation would be wrapped up.

While informing the House that the inquiry was still open, the justice minister distanced himself from the three-year delay, saying the matter rested exclusively with the magistrate leading this investigation.

“Consequently, it is not possible to give any indication on the requested date,” Zammit Lewis said.

Inaugurated in 2010 as part of a €27 million project, the plant had replaced an older one at the same site. Following the change in government in 2013, a decision was taken to close down the facility within a few years.

That process had to be accelerated when the plant was razed to the ground in a huge fire in May 2017 which was only extinguished after 24 hours.

A new recycling plant, to be located at Magħtab as part of a new complex which will also host an incinerator and organic waste plant, is not expected to be up and running before 2024. 

In the meantime, dry recyclable material from households, which is being collected in grey and green garbage bags, is being treated in a makeshift facility also at Magħtab.

However, this process is rather primitive, with some plastics being separated manually and metals separated by means of a magnet.