Wied Qirda works continue during festive season despite stop notice

Works by Infrastructure Malta in Żebbuġ’s Wied Qirda continued over the festive season despite a stop order, Moviment Graffitti said.

The stop order was issued by the Environment and Resources Authority 50 days ago but the roads agency ignored it and continued with works in the valley bed.

Graffitti expressed concern that ongoing works continued over the last two weeks of December, at the height of the holiday season. 

The works in question involve the construction of a bridge in a protected area for which no permit has been obtained.

The concrete bridge, approximately nine metres wide, is being constructed to facilitate access between one side of the valley and the other and will replace the concrete dam, which was also constructed illegally almost 20 years ago.

“If these works are being carried out to rectify past abuses, why are they not being carried out in cooperation with the environmental authority as required by law?” Graffitti asked.

ERA had already stopped Infrastructure Malta from carrying on with roadworks, which included asphalting, widening of the paths and laying down the foundations for the bridge. 

But according to Graffitti the enforcement notices were not only ignored, but the site notices removed, and the works carried on as if nothing had happened.

Wied Qirda is listed as a special area of conservation where no development may take place in it without the authorisation of ERA.

Graffitti called on Infrastructure Malta’s head Frederick Azzopardi to respect the law. 

“Azzopardi feels entitled to place himself above the law, as is often shown by his arrogance and contempt for the law,” Graffitti said, recalling that this is not the first time that Infrastructure Malta failed to respect planning laws. Another such example was the road widening works at Tal-Balal in San Ġwann that started before permits were issued.