More than 150 portable toilets have been spread across Floriana in a bid to encourage revellers attending the popular Isle of MTV concert not to relieve themselves on street corners.
Residents dread the return of the free open-air concert held on the Floriana Granaries, now in its 13th year, which sees tens of thousands of music lovers flood the town.
In particular, it is the floods of urine on street corners, cars, and front doors that have long infuriated residents who wake up to the “disgusting stink” the next morning.
“Last year I found so much piss outside my front door it was like some large animal had been kept there. It was on my plant pots, my letterbox, even my car that was parked just outside my house. It is utterly unacceptable,” resident Karl Grech said.
Mayor Davina Sammut Hili told Times of Malta she held a number of meetings with the authorities behind the event to try and make life easier on the Furjaniżi.
“This year, we are building on previous years and will have toilets spread all across town – concentrated at the Granaries, but also in side streets. We will also have more wardens roaming the streets than in previous years to act as a deterrent,” the mayor said.
Lionel Gerada from the Malta Tourism Authority said that minimising inconvenience to residents was a priority.
The MTA has provided free alternative parking for residents at the nearby MCP car park, and hopes that traffic management will help reduce congestion.
The authorities, he said, had also embarked on a waste separation experiment at this year’s edition of what is arguably the island’s largest free music event.
The MTA had set up six separate waste bins at 90 spots across Floriana that will be manned by members of the Cleansing Department to empty them out once they fill up.
The authorities will also be separating waste during the clean-up scheduled to take place tomorrow.
Normally, anything between 10 and 20 tons of litter are cleared from the Granaries the day after the concert.
Rising pop star Ava Max will be joining Bebe Rexha and DJ Martin Garrix at this year’s festival.