Amid perennial speculation on the long-term repercussions of a tunnel to connect the two largest islands of the Maltese archipelago, an ongoing process of overdevelopment is already having devastating effects on the environmental sustainability of Gozo.

Times of Malta recently reported figures, tabled in parliament, which show that the Planning Authority issued nearly 700 permits for projects outside development zones in Gozo over the past three years. While details on the type of development and the developer remain undisclosed, Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia was eager to downplay the figure.

“Safeguarding rural areas is one of our priorities,” he said, adding that “the proposed new Rural Policy and Design Guidance 2020, which is currently at consultation stage, seeks to protect Malta and Gozo’s rural areas”.

However, while the country is left waiting, any visitor to Gozo cannot help being confronted by the rampant construction taking place in most localities. Views of the Xewkija Rotunda are well on the way to being obscured by concrete, and cranes dot the surrounding landscape. Areas like Marsalforn have lost their local character in a sea of nondescript developments, while sites like the Ġgantija temples in Xagħra, more properly thought of as shared human heritage, are threatened by nearby construction projects.

While the economic exploitation of Maltese land has been high on the agenda of successive administrations, the present government’s trajectory seems firmly directed towards a full-scale urbanisation of the Maltese islands.

Indeed, the economy seems to consistently trump any other considerations. We have yet to hear from national authorities about how the affective attachments, in some cases formed over countless generations, between rural landholders and their properties is being impacted by a free-for-all attitude towards development. Unfortunately, reflection on the strength of these deep attachments only surfaces under the threat of loss, often when it is too late to forestall the inevitable. Healthy attachment to the landscape is enhanced through learning and understanding, however, it seems unlikely that younger generations will have the opportunity to form such relationships with their native environment.

What has been a failure of sustainability in Malta is now occurring in Gozo at an alarming rate, as ODZ land is appropriated and exploited.

There is no doubt that people are right to be alarmed about development projects which destroy their green breathing space. Extremely negative impacts are not confined to vulnerable citizens such as children and the elderly. The need for trees, green spaces and natural reserves are equally essential for healthy citizens, but beyond the tokenistic planting of saplings (often out of season!) these legitimate claims are falling on deaf ears.

Aside from the impact on local character, recreational activity, birds and other wildlife, losing green spaces is having real health implications, leading to sizeable budget expenditure as Malta continues to top EU rankings for the worst polluted air.

A report by Deakin University in Australia has revealed that urban residents should have access to natural green space a few minutes walk from home to address chronic diseases. These include conditions like depression, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity and stress related illnesses. By this metric, Malta is failing its citizens’ health in catastrophic ways.

Ultimately, the current spate of ill-conceived and hasty urban infrastructure projects is setting Gozo up for costly, irreversible and quite unnecessary negative impacts.

As a fast growing population is squeezed into smaller and less liveable spaces, and the urbanisation of the green environment escalates exponentially, the need to safeguard the environmental recovery of Malta and Gozo has become more urgent than ever.