Development frenzy hits Bingemma under ‘misleading agro-tourism guise’ - FAA

The development craze that has gripped Malta has now spread to the hamlet of Bingemma, once believed to be untouchable, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar said yesterday.

The NGO was reacting to a proposed tourist accommodation on a pristine unspoilt tract of land, which has been described by the applicant as one for seven rooms. However, the application in fact covers seven flatlets – each with their own entrance and unobstructed country views. The completely detached tourism complex would be surrounded by open fields and have a swimming pool and restaurant, FAA noted.

Due to its setting being completely rural, ecologically sensitive and a stone’s throw away from a protected ‘Area of High Landscape Value’, the land would not have been considered for such a development under the 2006 Local Plans.

However, FAA said, through the controversial Rural Policy and Design Guidance [RPDG] of 2014 which has opened the floodgates for hundreds of villas and other new buildings in the countryside, this request can be processed as an ‘agrotourism accommodation’.

FAA notes that although the RPDG policy does not impose many restrictions, it does however require that “the applicant is a registered farmer(s) tilling 60 tumoli of contiguous/consolidated land”.

The land in question has not been worked in over 10 years and at 6,500sqm the site falls far short of the 60 tumoli minimum threshold. Due to this, the applica- tion simply should not be considered by the Planning Authority (PA).

FAA warned that “if the PA is to waive this fundamental restriction, the Authority would be killing off one of the last remaining safeguards protecting ODZ. An approval of this application would set a precedent for practically any patch of land in ODZ, in the most remote locations, to be developed into hotels under the guise of agro-tourism. Such blatant dismantling of policies would truly spell the end for our rural landscapes.”

A viable agro-tourism accommodation should be run by genuine farmers tilling the land, providing visitors with an authentic experience that celebrates Maltese produce and supports genuine farming activity, FAA reiterated.

“This application attempts to exploit current loopholes to push forward speculation of rural land through its commercialization. The long-term impact of this could be devastating on the sector with expectations of agricultural land to be developed commercially. It also breaches the newly published Agricultural Policy which states that agro-tourism accommodation should be sited in nearby villages and not be used as an excuse for more building in the countryside.”

FAA insisted that agro-tourism “should be an avenue available only to legitimate farmers, as a means to reinvigorate the sector. We cannot keep compromising the agricultural industry and straining local resources to keep accommodating the land-grabbing frenzy”.