EIA reports being ­published online

Environment impact reports will start being immediately uploaded on the planning authority’s website once recommendations by the environment unit are made.

“This... aims at increasing the perception of the public that the EIA process is fairer, more transparent and safeguarded from undue bias,” the planning authority said.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority also moved away from the previous practice where EIA reports had to wait for the final report by the planning directorate to be concluded before being published.

The first impact assessment report published with the recommendations of the environment protection directorate was that of a €120 million tourist complex in Ħondoq Ir-Rummien, in Gozo. In the report, published two weeks ago, the unit slammed the project, saying it was “objectionable”.

Mepa said it recently carried out a number of significant improvements to its website, making it a less complex structure for public access and easier to navigate through information for planning applications that required an environment report.

The environment report represented an important component of public decision-making since it could help to predict, analyse and assess the potential environmental, social and economic impacts of a development, Mepa said.

The website would also help the public take part more effectively in the EIA process, making its findings more accurate and robust, it added.

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