Ghaxaq fireworks factory dismissed by technical committee

An Ghaxaq fireworks factory proposed by the Ghaqda Tan-Nar San Gabriel, Tarxien has been given the thumbs down by an ad hoc technical committee set up to assess the safety aspects of new fireworks factories. 

But no decision has been taken yet by the same committee with regard to another controversial factory in Wied id-Dies in Gharghur.

The technical committee was appointed to conduct risk assessments for new applications for fireworks factories before these are submitted to the Planning Authority. Even if granted clearance by the committee, new fireworks factories still need a permit from the Planning Authority. Ongoing discussions on other complexes are still pending, a PA spokesperson told MaltaToday.

According to a PA spokesperson the committee prepares very detailed technical reports, which include an assessment on the complex’s risks.

So far the ad hoc committee has given its approval to fireworks factories located outside development zones (ODZ) in Gharb, and in Ta’ Hal Saflieni in Luqa, both of which have already been approved by the PA.

The Ghaxaq application was already destined for refusal in 2013 but the application was postponed in view of the new policy on firework factories. The new policy controversially allows fireworks factories on dry agricultural land.

The Ghaxaq council had objected because the development abuts farmland worked by both part-time and full-time growers and because of its proximity to the Gudja cemetery, a number of green houses and neighboring businesses, which employ many workers.

But the ad hoc committee has yet to take a decision on a number of pending applications, including two ODZ factories in Kercem and Gharb, and another in the Wied id-Dies valley.

Wied id-Dies application

The decision to extend the footprint of the St Bartholomew’s fireworks factory in Gharghur was postponed in view of the new policy approved in 2014, despite a clear recommendation by the case officer to refuse it. New plans for this development were submitted in November.

A legal notice issued in 2013 allowed developers the option to ask for a postponement of decisions on applications that were likely to be affected by new policies.

The St Bartholomew’s fireworks factory application proposes the erection of two 18-square-metre stores, three 35-square-metre workshops, three 14-square-metre workshops, one 21-square-metre mixing room and five two-metre high blast walls. 

The site of the development lies on the Madliena side of Wied id-Dies, 180 metres from the Swieqi residential area, which is being proposed for scheduling as a Grade 2 Area of Ecological Importance. 

The Environment Protection Directorate described the site as rich in vegetation associated with the presence of nearby carob trees. 

An ecological report presented by the applicants states that the area is characterized by very little soil, and suggests that the grass in the area constitutes a severe fire hazard due to its proximity to the existing fireworks factory. 

But the MEPA case officer still called for the refusal of the application, both for ecological reasons and for its deleterious impact on Swieqi residents. 

The new policy bans new fireworks factories in Grade 1 and Grade 2 scheduled areas. But no such limits are imposed on extensions of existing fireworks factories. 

Other pending applications include one in an agricultural area in Kercem – in between the areas known as L-Awejna, Ta’ Xellul and Ta’ Wied il-Mans – outside development boundaries.

The Kercem local council is objecting because of the security concerns raised by farmers. But developer Sammy Spiteri insists his proposal is in line with the newly approved policy on fireworks.

“There is nothing in the law saying that you cannot build a factory in the vicinity of farmers tilling the land,” Spiteri told MaltaToday.