The Environmental Resources Authority said on Friday it cannot greenlight a proposed waterpolo pitch development by the St Julian’s Aquatic Sports Club unless it is downscaled.
The warning was sounded during a meeting that ERA board members held to vote on the environmental impact assessment for a project - PA/03927/19 - that would see the construction of two large swimming pools measuring 852 metres and 152 square metres respectively. The pools would be used for waterpolo matches and training sessions.
The proposal includes spectator seating, a deck for the operation of a lido and restaurants, a gym/training room, a physiotherapy room, a committee room, changing rooms, toilets, kitchens, store rooms, a pump room and a dive centre.
In order to achieve this, some 3,140 square metres of land reclamation are envisioned in St Julian’s Bay.
The environmental impact study presented on Friday found that, as proposed, the project would see the permanent loss of some 1,089 square metres of Posidonia beds as well as 835 square metres of matte seagrass.
If approved, the project would take roughly a year to complete, with four weeks of site preparations, four weeks of demolition works, 18 weeks of marine works (including land reclamation), 22 weeks of civil works, 18 weeks of mechanical and electrical engineering works, 10 weeks of finishing works and six weeks of site cleaning. Some of these works overlap.
However, following its assessment, ERA said that it is of the opinion that in order for the case to proceed further in the planning process, the proposal “merits further reduction to the visual impact and to the encroachment of the sea bed supporting P.oceanica meadows”.
Lawyer Claire Bonello, who spoke at the hearing, said that objections to the proposal are not departing from a point that the club should not have a waterpolo pitch, but that it did not have to be so large and encroach on such a wide area of the bay.
The size of the proposed project also raised concerns that it would impact the designated bathing areas, she said.
St Julian’s ASC President Peter Bonavia said that on the other hand, the club was already providing a service to the community and presently did not have the adequate infrastructure to cater for all of its members. The construction of the pools and the jetty would also serve to reduce the impact of the waves in St Julian’s Bay as well as Balluta Bay, he said.
The EIA studies show that the project will result in higher waves in the middle section of Spinola Bay, which will negatively impact marine life.
Fishermen who operate from Spinola have also expressed concern that this may negatively impact them.
However, the studies have also shown that the project would see wave heights reduced in the Balluta area, which would serve to protect the coast from flooding events.
PN MP and former St Julian’s Mayor Albert Buttigieg also warned that allowing the project to go ahead on such a large scale would result in the over-commercialisation of the area.
If residents were unhappy with their properties being flooded by crashing waves, they would soon also have to contend with music from the proposed lido being played at all hours of the night, he said.
The Authority said that the applicant would have to come back to it with revised plans before it can hand in its final assessment to the Planning Authority.
The application is still in its screening phase, meaning it is not yet considered to be a full application.