€20 million agricultural water polishing plant inaugurated in Gozo

The second of three proposed ‘New Water’ polishing plants, which will be providing high-quality water for agricultural and landscaping use, has been launched. 

The plants, which are based at Ras il-Hobz, Gozo, and will be run by the Water Services Corporation, will be processing water which was previously being dumped into the sea after being treated, and which can now be re-used for non-drinking purposes.

The sophisticated microfiltration, reverse osmosis and oxidisation processes at the new plants - which has required a total investment of €20 million in European Union and government funds - will ensure that a highly secure source of water is provided, the Energy Ministry said.

Through a dedicated infrastructure that will look to distribute the water across rural areas, the investment will eventually reach a total of €30 million. 

Around 2,200 hectares of fields - which amount to about a quarter of all fields in Malta - will be benefitting from the scheme, the Ministry said.

"Following the successful implementation of the polishing plants in Ras il-Hobz in Gozo and in Mellieha, which was installed in 2017, the Ministry will be looking to open the third and final plant in Ta’ Barkat in the South of Malta," it highlighted, underlining that the new system, once fully completed, will be pumping more than seven billion "new litres" of water across the islands. 

WSC Chief Executive Officer Richard Bilocca underscored the importance the project has in terms of water management to rural areas, emphasising the positive impact it would have on the water table, since every litre of water extracted from the new polishing plants meant a litre less extracted from the groundwater. 

Energy Minister Joe Mizzi said during the launch that the government was commited to the agricultural sector, stressing that it would will be doing its utmost to help the industry.