Hondoq traffic impact assessment has to be done again, Qala council insists

Published on the Malta Independent on Sunday 9th May, 2010 by Francesca Vella.

Qala Local Council is insisting that the public consultation meeting on the proposed Hondoq ir-Rummien development should not be held before the traffic impact assessment is carried out again. Despite the fact that 85 per cent of Qala residents had voted against the project in 2002, the 2006 Local Plan earmarked the Hondoq Bay area for a mega-tourism development, which resurfaced in 2007, four years after it had been shelved, following vociferous protests from the residents. The developers are proposing the construction of a massive project, comprising a hotel, yacht marina and tourist village on the 68-tumoli site. A Qala resident points out in a letter in this newspaper (see page 25) that “Signs have been put up showing the project with its yacht marina, hotels, restaurants and apartments”. The public consultation meeting is now scheduled to take place on Wednesday, 19 May, but Qala councillor Paul Buttigieg, who is also secretary of Moviment Harsien Hondoq (Hondoq Protection Movement), told The Malta Independent on Sunday that the meeting should not be held before the traffic impact assessment is redone. “During a meeting between the local council and the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (Mepa) about six months ago, it was agreed that the traffic impact assessment had to be carried out again, because the terms of reference were flawed, and Mepa was meant to order the developer to redo the impact assessment.” The impact assessment states, for instance, that Qala’s main streets are 7.2 metres wide, but Mr Buttigieg pointed out that some of them are just 4.2 metres wide. He said one of the traffic counts was carried out near Qala School, which is fine because it is quite central; but the other two places where traffic counts were carried out are some distance from the village centre and are actually closer to Ghajnsielem than they are to Qala. In fact, a government study showed that the main street leading to Qala Square is the second most polluted street in Gozo, begging the question why this study was not quoted in the Traffic Impact Statement. “We already have problems with the huge flow of traffic. Qala already has traffic problems caused by the heavy trucks passing through the village on their way to and from the quarries, even though a bypass was specifically intended to serve that purpose,” said Mr Buttigieg. “The creation of a holiday village at Hondoq will mean that, in addition to the quarry traffic, this village of narrow streets would have to cope with hundreds of extra vehicle trips daily, by tourists and hotel suppliers.” Mr Buttigieg insisted that their aim is “for Hondoq to remain for everyone to enjoy, not just for the few.” As Moviment Harsien Hondoq pointed out in a petition it has been circulating, because of the constant flow of traffic during both the construction phase and post construction, the project is expected to worsen air quality in Qala. Mr Buttigieg also referred to the fact that, for a long time, the local council has applied for the square to be closed to traffic on Saturday evenings, to create a pedestrian area. However, the Transport Authority has been taking too long to reach a decision, he said, possibly reflecting the interests of the proposed Hondoq development, the main access point of which would be the centre of Qala. Meanwhile, the developer is said to have contacted Qala School and the Qala archpriest to ask for the use of a hall to serve as a venue for the forthcoming consultation meeting. “It appears that the meeting is going to have to be postponed after all, because neither the school administration, nor the archpriest offered the developer a place to hold the meeting,” said Mr Buttigieg. He also noted that, in June 2008, the government allocated a grant of €10,000 to Qala Local Council for the analytical and technical study of the environmental impact of the proposed Hondoq project. Unfortunately, to date the council has not received the grant. Residents and nature lovers are still hoping that Hondoq will be saved. In fact, Moviment Harsien Hondoq has been circulating a petition entitled SOS Hondoq, which calls for a change in Hondoq’s 2006 Local Plan. The petition can be found at www.soshondoq.blogspot.com Mr Buttigieg explained that, prior to 2006, Hondoq had been earmarked for an afforestation project and a national park. As the petition explains: “Hondoq was supposed to be a nature park Any development there will turn an open area into an urban area” and this “violates the legally-binding Structure Plan”. The petition goes on to say that, as confirmed by the Mepa auditor, there was no proper public consultation for the changes to the 2006 Local Plan. “Gozo cannot afford to turn Hondoq ir-Rummien into another urban area like Xlendi, Marsalforn and Mgarr, for it deprives people of places in which to relax, be in touch with nature and the natural environment, away from urban surroundings. “Such a development will also have a negative impact on Gozo’s tourism, as it will put off tourists who come to the area specifically to enjoy the unspoilt character of Hondoq Bay, which even the developers’ assessors admit will be negatively affected by the project.”