The year 2006 will remain etched in the local collective mindset as the year when the repulsive ‘scheme rationalisation’ exercise was conducted.
‘Rationalisation’ is actually a misnomer given that this exercise was tantamount to the inclusion of a gargantuan swathe of land, equivalent to the built-up area of the village of Siġġiewi. Despite a considerable span of time having elapsed since the ‘exercise’, extensive parcels of land which swapped sides – i.e. from an ODZ designation to one where development can be contemplated – have yet to be developed, presumably totalling over 150,000 square metres.
Probably the largest parcel of the redeemed ODZ plots is the one flanking Triq Duramblat (and a host of other streets) in Mosta known as id-Dib, overlooking the Flower Power and go karting facilities, and making up a staggering 40,000 square metres. Given that football pitches are frequent yardsticks of choice, the dimensions are equivalent to seven or eight pitches.
The parcel in question is evident within the rationalisation exercise map for Mosta (Map 27), accessible at www.pa.org.mt. Besides the id-Dib area, the same map delineates only one other sizeable parcel destined to relinquish its ODZ status, located at Ta’ Żokkrija, and does not include a single parcel proposed for exclusion from the development zone.
Is it inconceivable for the public coffers to be put to good use in retrieving the as yet undeveloped former ODZ swathes and strike them off developers’ maps?
Truth be told, to date development plans for the area are still nascent, given that a Planning Control application to delineate zoning, building heights and road alignments has been submitted. Only once these seminal aspects have been established can planning applications for the development proper be submitted. A similar PC application was rebutted by the PA some two years ago on the ground that it did not represent a good example of urban design.
Given that, economically speaking, we are currently experiencing a windfall, with surpluses being the order of the day, is it inconceivable for the public coffers to be put to good use in retrieving the as yet undeveloped former ODZ swathes and strike them off developers’ maps? Such an audacious move would understandably involve compensating the developers who have homed in on the land parcels in question. The sums of money forked out would have to be steeper than those one normally expects for ODZ areas, justified by the promise of development.
With our developed footprint in excess of 30 per cent (when considering ancillary facilities such as road infrastructure), outstripping by eons the EU average, a supply of residential units that is not exactly close to fizzling out, the dense residential nature of the proposed development at Mosta, a property affordability which seems independent of supply and a public infrastructure heaving under the weight of a burgeoning population, calls for the non-development of the extensive Mosta parcel are more than legitimate.
Other arguments against the development include the proximity to the Combo Tower, to a cemetery and to yet another large-scale sports village planned right opposite on the ex-Flower Power site. Representations about the PC zoning application in Mosta can be submitted online until July 10 through the Planning Authority website.
Aliens on the rampage
Citizen science has definitely come of age and is increasingly providing scientists with priceless information about phenomena which would otherwise be too unwieldy to monitor in orthodox ways.
The documentation of marine alien species (also known as ‘non-native’ or ‘non-indigenous’ species) within our waters is yet another field congenial to the adoption of citizen science protocols. Through the Spot the Alien Fish campaign operated jointly by the University of Malta and International Ocean Institute (IOI), new arrivals of species and the further spread and establishment of previous arrivals have been extensively documented in recent months.
For instance, the campaign documented the first ever record of the Red Sea mantis shrimp (Erugosquilla massavensis) in our waters, with a single individual of the species being caught within a local harbour (hardly surprising, given the status of harbours as hubs for alien species introduced through the extensive shipping traffic). This brings the total number of aliens recorded to date in our waters to around 70 (excluding those range-expanding species native of the eastern Atlantic).
In addition, the campaign also documented the further spread of the cotton candy red alga Lophocladia lallemandii, the alien sea hare Aplysia dactyomela and of the dusky spinefoot Siganus luridus, a species of rabbitfish, in our waters.
The latest in the Maltese citizen science tally is the Spot the Alien campaign, which is being launched this month and which targets invertebrate alien species already recorded within the central Mediterranean. These include mollusc, crustacean and sea urchin species.
The user-friendly campaign poster features a total of 24 alien invertebrate species and furnishes ancillary information on each, including date of first record for Maltese waters and the native range of each species.
The campaign poster will be available for download through the www.aliensmalta.eu website and hard copies can be requested from aliensmalta@gmail.com. A number of talks on the alien species theme are being organised with local scuba diving clubs in the coming weeks by the Spot the Alien citizen science campaign team.
This is a Times of Malta print opinion piece