“Instead of aiding and abetting the speculators it would be better for the Planning Authority to defend solar rights for all to support everybody’s efforts in reducing the impacts of climate change,”  Carmel Cacopardo, Chairperson, ADPD – The Green Party declared at a press conference in front of the Planning Authority offices in Floriana this morning.

Dr Ralph Cassar, General Secretary, ADPD – The Green Party said that climate change remains the greatest challenge of our times. In spite of all the rhetoric the PLPN policies reveal a lack of understanding of how serious the situation is which leads the country not to prepare appropriately.

The ‘Low Carbon Development Strategy’ was published by the Government a few months ago. But all one can find are recommendations – essentially it means that the Government wants to always maintain the status quo while dropping the odd incentive. In spite of the Prime Minister’s boast in Glasgow that reducing our use of carbon is the ideal tool for his Government to face up to climate change, the low-carbon strategy does not mention anything how this can be applied to new buildings as well as eventually in old ones too.

There’s no time for fooling around. Land use planning should address with urgency its impact on climate change by also implementing a strategy of reducing our carbon footprint, among other measures. Unless decisive action is taken soon it can only get worse, concluded Dr Cassar.

Carmel Cacopardo said that the Planning Authority can contribute in a practical manner towards achieving zero-carbon in construction by prioritising and guaranteeing access to solar rights in land use planning. This should supersede other planning ‘rights’, such as that of additional floors on existing buildings. There is also the need to improve the power distribution network to enable urban zones to contribute more in renewable energy generation.

It is certain that investment in solar energy generation pays and is sustainable even when considering its long term impact. Although the Government is planning a second interconnector with Sicily, we know that at the moment it is curtailing the use of the current one we have due to the phenomenal increase in energy prices in Europe.

The shift from petrol- and diesel-fuelled cars to electric vehicles will bring about a proportionate increase in energy demand. If this can be counterbalanced by a substantial increase in renewable energy generation we would have matched at least in part some of this additional energy demand.

Solar rights should be strengthened. They should no longer be at the mercy of unbridled development and an insensitive land use planning process. The increase in permissible building heights introduced when the 2006 lot of local plans was approved had a heavy price-tag in renewable energy sacrificed. We are still paying this price and it will be quite some time before we recover from this irresponsible impact.

All of this falls in the lap of the Planning Authority which is abdicating its responsibilities towards our country. As was revealed earlier on this week, the Planning Authority even tried to use the conclusions from a GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) audit to limit a principle at the core of good governance: transparency – without it there will be no accountability, concluded Cacopardo.

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L-Awtorità tal-Ippjanar qegħda tonqos lill-pajjiż

“Flok ma tibqa’ tipprova taqdi lill-ispekulaturi mill-koxxa, ikun ferm aħjar kieku l-Awtorità tal-Ippjanar tiddefendi d-dritt ta’ aċċess għax-xemx għal kulħadd biex insaħħu l-isforzi ta’ kulħadd fit-taqbida kontra t-tibdil tal-klima.” Dan sostnieh Carmel Cacopardo, Chairperson ta’ ADPD – The Green Party f’konferenza stampa quddiem l-uffiċji ta’ l-Awtorità tal-Ippjanar fil-Furjana dalgħodu.

Dr Ralph Cassar, Segretarju Ġenerali ta’ ADPD – The Green Party, qal li l-akbar sfida ta’ żminijietna hija l-bidla fil-klima. Minkejja r-retorika, meta tifli l-politika tal-PLPN, malajr tinduna kemm mhux qed jifhmu l-gravità tas-sitwazzjoni u allura qed jonqsu milli jippreparaw lill-pajjiż għaliha b’mod adegwat.

Il-Gvern xi xhur ilu ppubblika  ‘Low Carbon Development Strategy’. Imma kull ma’ hemm fiha huma rakkomandazzjonijiet – bażikament il-Gvern irid iħalli kollox kważi kif inhu u joffri xi inċentiva ‘l hemm u ‘l hawn.  Minkejja li l-Prim Ministru fi Glasgow ftaħar li id-dekarbonizzazzjoni hi l-iktar għodda importanti biex il-Gvern immexxi minnu jilqa’ għall-bidla fil-klima, l-istrateġija low-carbon ma tgħid xejn, dwar kif dan għandu jkun applikat fil-bini il-ġdid u eventwalment anke fil-bini l-qadim.   

Ma fadalx żmien għal-logħob.  Hemm bżonn urġenti li l-ippjanar għall-użu tal-art jindirizza ukoll l-impatti fuq il-bidla tal-klima fost oħrajn billi anke hawn tkun implimentata strateġija ta’ dekarbonizzazzjoni. Jekk ma jittieħdux passi deċiżivi is-sitwazzjoni tista’ biss tmur għall-agħar, temm jgħid Dr Cassar.

Carmel Cacopardo qal li mod prattiku kif l-Awtorita’ tal-Ippjanar tista’ tagħti l-kontribut tagħha biex noqorbu lejn il-mira ta’ karbonju żero fl-industrija tal-bini hi billi fil-politika dwar l-ippjanar għall-użu tal-art tagħti prijorità u tassigura d-dritt għal aċċess għax-xemx. Dan għandu jieħu prijorità fuq drittijiet oħra tal-ippjanar, b’mod partikolari fuq d-dritt li wieħed jibni sulari iktar fuq bini eżistenti. Hemm bżonn ukoll li ntejbu is-sistema nazzjonali tad-distribuzzjoni tal-elettriku biex ikun possibli li z-zoni residenzjali jikkontribwixxu iktar fl-isforz nazzjonali biex niġġeneraw iktar enerġija rinovabbli. 

Huwa evidenti li investiment fil-ġenerazzjoni tal-enerġija mix-xemx jirrendi u huwa wieħed sostenibbli anke meta nħarsu fit-tul. Għalkemm il-Gvern qiegħed iħejji l-pjanijiet għat-tieni interconnector minn Sqallija, nafu li  bħalissa anke l-użu tal-unika wieħed li għandna kellu jiġi ristrett wara żidiet fenomenali li kien hemm fil-prezz tal-enerġija fl-Ewropa.

Bħala riżultat tal-qalba tat-trasport bl-art minn karozzi li jaħdmu bil-petrol jew diesel għall-elettriku, id-domanda għall-elettriku se tiżdied skont kemm jiżdiedu l-karozzi tal-elettriku.  Jekk jirnexxielna nżidu b’mod sostanzjali l-ġenerazzjoni ta’ enerġija rinovabbli nistgħu bla dubju nindirizzaw parti minn din iż-żieda fid-domanda għall-enerġija.

Id-dritt tagħna għal aċċess għax-xemx għandu jissaħħaħ. Ma jistax ikun li dan id-dritt jibqa’ dipendenti fuq proċess tal-ippjanar tal-użu tal-art insensittiv u żvilupp bl-addoċċ. Iż-żieda fl-għoli permissibli tal-bini meta kienu approvati l-pjani lokali tal-2006 wassal għal impatt negattiv f’enerġija rinovabbli li ntilfet. Hu prezz li għadna nħallsu u se nibqgħu nħallsu għall-futur immedjat. Għax baqa’ ftit biex nirkupraw minn dan l-impatt negattiv.

Dan kollu jaqa’ taħt ir-responsabbiltà ta’ l-Awtorità tal-Ippjanar illi minflok li tfittex li taqdi d-doveri tagħha lejn pajjiżna tħabbar saħansitra din il-ġimgħa li pprovat tinħeba wara l-konkluzjonijiet ta’ audit tal-GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) biex tnaqqar mit-trasparenza: prinċipju bażiku tal-governanza tajba. Mingħajr transparenza ma hemmx u ma jistax ikun hemm kontabilità temm jgħid il-Perit Cacopardo.