The Malta Independent on Sunday
Proposed shooting range may prove distracting to secondary school’s students
The proposed shooting range on the outskirts of Mosta will not only create a noise nuisance for the nearby Mount St Joseph Retreat House, but also for the recently-built secondary school in the Żokrija area in Mosta which is well within earshot.
The shooting range set to be developed in an extensive area surrounding the former anti-aircraft battery in Tal-Busbesija, one of four government-owned sites offered to the private sector for commercial purposes on condition that they are restored.
But the plans have come under fire as the site is right next to the Mount St Joseph Retreat House, which was built by the Jesuits in 1964 and which welcomes thousands of people every year. Its reputation for silence and tranquillity stands to be shattered if the complex comes to fruition: the nearest planned shooting range would be just over 100m away from the retreat house’s grounds at its closest point.
The Jesuits have come out in opposition to the planned structure, and the Augustinian community has publicly backed the fellow religious order’s campaign. An online petition to “save Mount St Joseph” on change.org has attracted over 6,500 supporters at the time of going to print.
The petition site allows signatories to state why they are supporting the cause, and some supporters have highlighted that their concerns about the noise created by the site extend beyond the retreat house itself.
Also expressing their concern are residents of nearby houses, including what is known as the Żokrija area in Mosta. But while the area is almost exclusively residential, there is one notable exception to the rule: the large secondary school that was only opened in 2011.
School is around 400m away, some homes are even closer
At its closest point, the school would be only some 400m away from the planned 300m rifle range within the proposed complex, which would be the largest of its type in Malta. All of the ranges within the complex would be within 1km of the school.
But while the approximately 800 students who attend the school face the prospect of regular gunfire punctuating their lessons, it appears that neither the school’s administration nor the students’ families have raised any concerns about the project yet. The school’s head, Jude Zammit, told The Malta Independent on Sunday that neither students nor their parents have contacted the school to express concern about the possible impact of the shooting range.
While the planned shooting range complex would be the largest one in Malta by far –in the light of the country’s small size, it is arguable that any other com- plex of a similar size would follow – it is being proposed before a policy on shooting ranges has been drawn up.
A final draft of a “supplementary planning guidance for shooting ranges” had been published by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority in 2006, but it has not translated into policy.
This draft policy clearly points out that the shooting range’s “site should not be located close to hospitals, schools, rural settlements or residential areas, homes for retired or disabled due to acoustic nuisances generated”.
It is unclear on how close is close, though it does point out that applicants should include a survey sheet showing the nearest schemed areas and other residences within 600m of the firing positions.
Apart from the school and the retreat house, there are a number of residences within 600m of the proposed firing positions.
Perhaps the worst affected is a farmhouse directly to the south of the proposed complex, which would be less than 100m away from the nearest shooting range. Another rural residence is just to the north of the proposed trap and skeet complex, less than 200m away from the firing positions.
There are also dozens of homes in the Żokrija area, in the vicinity of the school, which will be considerably affected by the noise coming from the proposed shooting range.