Following Wednesday’s collapse of a road undermined by neighbouring construction, eNGOs Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar … condemn the fact that these works were being handled by the same contractor involved in the collapse leading to Miriam Pace’s death, who was still being allowed to operate.
This proves, if proof were needed, that in spite of being the sector that has most impact on residents’ lives, construction is the enconomic sector that is least regulated. Even a home baker is more regulated than a contractor.
Contractors are completely unregulated, leaving excavation, one of the riskiest processes in a construction project, without any regulation at all. The absence of a rigorous contractor registration system means that anyone with demolition or excavation equipment can carry out such works, without basic training, technical knowledge, or insurance cover. Contractors and builders are inadequately trained to deal with modern building techniques and materials, and also completely unregulated after obtaining a licence. Government handed over responsibility for the registry of developers and contractors to the Building Regulations Office and the MDA, without the disciplinary procedures which could have prevented this second collapse by a repeat offender.
Site managers required under the Avoidance of Damage to Third Party Regulations, are not required to have specific skills or literacy, leaving some site managers unable to understand construction drawings or the works method statement they are responsible to enforce.
Developers are each being granted some €200,000 of taxpayer money to replace their construction heavy equipment, but was this scheme monitored and by whom? Heavy plant and machinery is only certified on entry to Malta, when in reality regular checks are needed and tower cranes require certification every time they are erected.
Not only have the authorities done nothing in the face of such dangers, but their policies have aggravated matters, as increasing building heights has a direct impact on the structural integrity, seismic resistance and excavation requirements of buildings. Required on-site parking is usually accommodated in excavated underground carparks, without EU regulations on structural engineering, foundations, and anti-seismic design, further exacerbating risks to public safety.
Again, there are no centralised building and construction regulations in line with those of other EU states. Many regulations are contradictory or obsolete, and fall under the remit of over 22 public entities. Worst of all, Ian Borg’s 2019 revision of building regulations weaked the requirement for thorough geological studies prior to excavations; indeed it has been reported that no geological studies were carried out before excavations on the Hamrun fatality site.
It is shocking that no authority is responsible for the safety of planned buildings, a role that the PA refutes. As for site safety, it is a damning indictment on Minister Ian Borg that the Building and Construction Agency set up in 2019 demands ‘short’ method statements as it doesn’t have the technical resources to read the full safety details in architects’ method statements. The Building Regulations Office (BRO) has been starved of resources, convenient for developers when some 2,000 sites have sprung up over the islands. For this reason, enforcement is unknown and developers act with impunity, ignoring the law forbidding excavation less than 76cm from party-walls, which has contributed to recent collapses.
Allowing excavations to continue unchecked since the Gwardamangia collapse has resulted in more injuries, destruction of peoples’ homes and a death. For this reason the NGOs call for Ian Borg’s resignation, as Minister responsible for the failed 2019 revision of building regulations and for the systemic, profound institutional failure to regulate development. The fact that the contractor involved in the Hamrun case is allowed to continue to operate and cause more damage is outrageous; retaining Ian Borg in his post simply confirms that this Government has zero committment to the public’s safety and well-being.
