Kalkara marina will enhance harbour views, Transport Malta claims

Kalkara creek’s appearance will be “enhanced” by the proposed installation of 334 mooring bays for boats, Transport Malta claims in a Project Development Statement.

The PDS, including visuals of the proposed marina, were published recently by TM.

The berths will occupy 35,000sq.m of space inside the creek along Triq Sally Port and Triq ix-Xatt. An existing marina with 173 berths, already covers an area of 21,000sq.m in front of a boatyard below Villa Bighi.

According to a plan submitted in 2021 the project foresees 90 berths for smaller boats under 6m in length, 80 berths for boats which are between 6m and 8m long and 161 berths for yachts between 8m and 10m and a maximum width of 7m.

The document claims that the present situation where boats are parked haphazardly in the bay “pays little tribute to the splendour of the fortifications” and the proposed project shows “how an organised system can be set up”.

The Superintendence for Cultural Heritage has also dropped its earlier objections about the intensity and formal layout of the mooring bays.

In its objection submitted two years ago the SCH had called for “a more organic layout to minimise the impact on views within this area of high scenic value.”

But in its latest submission the SCH welcomed the latest designs which include a “corridor along the shoreline” which is “free of any moorings and free of any clutter” as well as a central corridor between the moorings.

“This does not only permit a better and cleaner definition of the area, but it softens the aspects of massing in the proposed mooring bays,” the SCH said.

The document warns that if the system is not organised the negative impact on views will be greater. This is because at present a user can choose his own spot at will once Transport Malta approves the berth.

“The increasing number of applications shows that in a few years, the area will be inundated with boats of all sizes and types. This future scenario will have a visual impact on the scheduled structures,” TM said.

According to TM, users also use their floating buoys, creating a visual eyesore with floaters of all types, sizes and colours. “Some users even prefer to use other makeshift systems including jerry cans and other floating containers instead of purposely designed floating buoys,” the authority said.

The project proposes the installation of concrete anchors and does not include any attachments to the edge of the coast and hence is “a totally reversible project”.

Statistics show that the number of berths is increasing by 70 new applications per year and it foresees that at current rates “the thousandth application will be submitted by 2029”.

The need for this project is evident and if the situation is not addressed imminently, soon the space will run out with far less boats than the maximum capacity of the area. This is because currently boats occupy more space. A planned scheme will provide a denser zone of boats but users will have a better approach in and out of the inlet.

The Environment and Resources Authority has also issued its clearance with the condition that concrete anchors and mooring lines are placed at least two metres away from the nearest corals. Studies had shown that the Kalkara creek hosts 12 colonies of the protected Mediterranean Pillow coral (cladocora caespitosa) which is listed in the IUCN Red List as an endangered species.

The Planning Authority still has to take a final decision on the proposed marina but the clearance by the SCH and ERA makes its approval more likely.

In October 2019, former Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg insisted that the application was limited to a reorganization of existing berths, assuring Kalkara residents that the Kalkara marina “will not be growing by even one centimetre”.