Summer heat an issue when it comes to spread of Magħtab odours – Wasteserv

Kevin Schembri Orland The hot summers have always been an issue when it comes to odours emanating from the Għallis landfill, Wasteserv told this newsroom when questioned following PN MP George Pullicino’s claims that Magħtab stinks and the smells were noticeable in surrounding areas.

Mr Pullicino said that, in the past, the stench coming from Magħtab used to spread over a wide area. Through EU funds, he said, the former PN government had aimed to resolve this problem and considerable work had taken place. “A total of 55km of pipes were laid so that gases from the Magħtab mountain are collected and burnt at a high temperature”, he said, adding that the damaging particles would be removed in the process. “Up until today, no less than 6,000 cubic metres of this gas are collected each day.”

Mr Pullicino claimed that, for the first time in nine years: “We are again experiencing smells when driving along the Coast Road. We had forgotten about this in our country, yet suddenly this problem has popped up again. This is a phenomenon caused by bad rubbish dump management.” He said that the current Wasteserv staff are all new and inexperienced and that those who knew what they were doing had been removed by this government.

In response, Wasteserv told this newsroom: “Whilst every care is taken to try and minimise such nuisances, the summer heat does little to help. Odours are generally caused by decomposing organic material. To minimise odours as much as physically possible, we have reduced the working surface area and increased the layer of inert material used daily to cover the compacted waste at the end of the day. This is then scarified in the morning to save landfill space. It is therefore incorrect to attribute an increase in odours to bad management or incompetent staff. It is pertinent to note that most technical staff have been employed with the company for a number of years”.

The company referred to the “unfounded” allegations made by Mr Pullicino. “Over the past three years, Wasteserv’s management has strengthened the organisation to be able to successfully complete three main national EU-funded projects as well as other minor projects, whilst strengthening internal operations. This has been a critical success that has ensured that millions of EU funds were not lost whilst operations were ongoing and unhindered. Contrary to what has been said in other media, all three new plants are currently undergoing commissioning and are already receiving waste. It is pertinent to note that these projects should have been finished prior to 2013.”

The PN MP also criticised Wasteserv on their handling of civic amenity sites, claiming that there were large numbers of fridges, freezers and cookers piled on top of each other. “How long has it been since these domestic appliances were exported? Are you trying to save money?” he asked.

Wasteserv, in response, said: “Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) piled at the CA Sites is currently being exported. It is pertinent to note that the implementation of the WEEE directive brought with it a brief period in which we did not export as these items would be required by the schemes, but exports have resumed.”