UPGRADE OF EXISTING BOVINE FARM D327, COVERED BY PA 4584/06, ACCORDING TO POLICY 2.3A OF THE RURAL POLICY AND DESIGN GUIDANCE – WITH THE CAPACITY TO PROCESS EFFLUENT FROM OTHER FARMS. PA 02406/18 SITE AT: TRIQ ZGHAWRI, MUNXAR GOZO Project Description Statement Tenaga Limited April 2018 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms Table of Contents Background of the Project 4 The Project Developer 6 Timing 7 Description of the Project 8 Stages of Operation 10 Process Flow Chart 12 Locations of the Proposed Development 14 Alternative Uses, Alternative Technologies and Suitable Alternative Locations 14 A description of the building characteristics, including size, scale, design and phasing 25 Building Characteristics 25 Phasing 30 Description of present land uses and environmental characteristics of the site 31 Description of surrounding land uses, their nature and environmental characteristics of the site 32 Description of Services on Site 39 Estimates of Employees 40 Project Description Statement – April 2018 1 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms Nature and quantities of raw material and energy to be used and waste generated during construction and operation 41 Project construction sequencing, machinery needed during construction 42 Transport, Parking and Access during construction and operation 43 Potential Environmental Impacts 44 Comparative assessment of alternative sites considered in Gozo for the Treatment Plant 50 No Objection from Superintendence of Cultural Heritage 51 Declaration: Tenaga Limited is the sole proprietor of all the information in the Project Description Statement (DPS). No other use, except that of the intention of the PDS shall be permitted. The document contains confidential commercial material of Tenaga Limited. Any transfer, in any form, of (or part of) this document to third parties outside the scope of the PDS, shall only be by permission of Tenaga Limited. Tenaga Limited counsel that if in the real need of disclosing of any information the user makes all possible efforts to restrict the information as much as possible. For any unauthorised disclosure of the PDS (or part of) without consent, Tenaga Limited reserves the right to prosecute by Law accordingly. Project Description Statement – April 2018 2 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms Table of Figures: FIGURE 1: SEPARATION PROCESS FLOW CHART 12 FIGURE 2: PROPOSED SEPARATION AND GRANULATION SITE FOR GOZO - MUNXAR 13 FIGURE 3: PROPOSED MUNXAR PLAN SITE 1 ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. FIGURE 4 3D IMAGE OF PROPOSED SITE – SITE 1 ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. FIGURE 5: PROPOSED BASEMENT LEVEL 15 FIGURE 6: PROPOSED FIRST FLOOR 15 FIGURE 7: SIDE CROSS SECTION OF PROPOSED UPGRADE 19 FIGURE 8: SITE PLAN – GHAJNSIELEM, TRIQ IL QALA – SITE 2 20 FIGURE 9: GROUND FLOOR AND BASEMENT LEVEL – SEPARATION & GRANULATION – SITE 2 20 FIGURE 10 3D IMAGE OF PROPOSED SITE – SITE 2 21 FIGURE 11 GHAJNSIELEM, RAS IL-HOBZ – SITE 3 22 FIGURE 12: GROUND FLOOR AND BASEMENT LEVEL, SEPARATION CENTRE – SITE 3 22 FIGURE 13 3D IMAGE OF PROPOSED PLAN – SITE 3 23 FIGURE 14 AERIAL VIEW OF PROPOSED PLAN – SITE 3 ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. FIGURE 15 GOZO SITE 1 – PROPOSED GROUND FLOOR ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. FIGURE 16 GOZO SITE 1 – PROPOSED BASEMENT LEVEL ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. FIGURE 17 GOZO SITE 1 – SIDE ELEVATION 29 FIGURE 18 CESSPIT DETAIL 29 FIGURE 19 3D IMAGE STREET VIEW – SITE 1 MUNXAR 30 FIGURE 20 PROPOSED BUILDING AREA – SITE 1 MUNXAR 31 FIGURE 21 EXISTING BUILDINGS (BLUE ARROW) & DAIRY FARMS IN SURROUNDING AREA (GREEN ARROW) - SITE 1 - MUNXAR 33 FIGURE 22 AGRICULTURAL FIELD OPPOSITE SITE – SITE 1 MUNXAR 34 FIGURE 23 AGRICULTURAL FIELD ADJACENT TO SITE – SITE 1 MUNXAR 35 FIGURE 24 PROPOSED SITE (RED CIRCLE), 1-8 DAIRY FARMS IN THE SURROUNDING AREA (COLOURED CIRCLES) – SITE 1 MUNXAR 36 FIGURE 25 YELLOW ARROW INDICATES AREA AS INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE ZONE IN MUNXAR 37 FIGURE 26 SURROUNDING LAND WITH 200METRE BUFFER ZONE AT PROPOSED SITE- SITE 1 MUNXAR 38 FIGURE 27 AERIAL VIEW OF SITE 1, MUNXAR 43 # Project Description Statement – April 2018 3 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms Background of the Project At present farm D327 which is located at the proposed site of Triq Zghawri, Munxar Gozo currently has a holding capacity of 10 milking cows with Permit Number: PA 4584/06. Tenaga proposes to upgrade this capacity to 30 milking cows according to policy 2.3A of the Rural Policy and Design Guidance. This upgrade will also include the latest technology in slurry separation systems. Presently the management of by-products (slurry) originating from bovine, swine and poultry farms in Malta and Gozo present an environmental disposal issue. This material due to its nature cannot be flushed away into the sewage system since such material will damage both the treatment system and block the network in the process. Moreover, when this material ends up in the sea untreated, the effect on the marine life and the environment is detrimental. As stated in the Agriculture Waste Management in the Maltese Islands (2015-2030) report, the Government have taken significant policy decisions, such as: To ban the application of slurry or liquids to land And to prohibit the discharge of pig slurry to the sewage system Yet it is still the common practice of spreading untreated manure or slurry on agricultural land, which is not ideal and should be stopped immediately as such practice is creating problems in the water table network. Farm waste management in Malta and Gozo is governed by the requirements of several EU Directives. Most importantly the Nitrate Directive as transposed by the Legal Notice 343 of 2001 and by the Protection of Waters against Pollution caused by Nitrates from Agricultural Source Regulations, 2003. These vehicles provide our islands, the designation as Nitrate Project Description Statement – April 2018 4 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms Vulnerable Zone, the formulation of Code of Good Agriculture Practice and the preparation of action programmes in respect to designated vulnerable zones. The waste Regulations 2011 (L.N. 184 of 2011) also drives the Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC. Other legislation that also pertains to waste management of Agriculture waste is the Urban Waste Water Directive. The European Commission Staff Working Document Report (2015) on progress in implementation of Water Framework Directive Programmes Measures Accompanying the document Communication from the commission to the European Parliament and the council, the Water Framework Directive and Floor Directive towards the ‘good status’ of EU water and to reduce floods stated that Malta must: ‘Submit a plan on resolving the discharge of animal husbandry waste in the sewage collecting system because the Maltese Waste Water Treatment Plants had a performance problem as regards to compliance with the COD standards. This was linked to farm manure discharge in the collecting.’ Tenaga Limited is ready to embark on a project that will offer treatment and separation of the solids and liquid originating from the by-products (slurry) of livestock. Project Description Statement – April 2018 5 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms The Project Developer Tenaga Limited is a newly formed organisation, focusing mainly on agriculture waste management, among other related projects. It is a set-up of associated experts, in various areas of expertise, to conduct research and development of sustainable projects in the same field. The structure of Tenaga’s organisation is composed of different individuals and entities who are engaged on a project lead and/or a retainer agreement to support and give consultancy on the on-going projects. These individuals come from different spheres and specialities such as, private consultants, organisations and individuals, particularly from the agriculture industry who are engaged for their services. Tenaga Limited is fully supported by foreign expertise for all the systems being proposed. This expertise is backed by years of market knowledge and hands-on experience by the suppliers and manufacturers. The project is endorsed by all suppliers for both equipment and technology, and specialists and technicians will be engaged until a fully functional plant is achieved. Furthermore, training will be given to our employees both locally and abroad. Some examples of where and for what, the proposed equipment is being used: BioGas Plant in Germany uses Anaerobic & Aerobic treatment and less odour Pig Farm in Zito, Croatia use lifetime of Lagoon and easier irrigation Pig Farm in Saskatchewan, Canada use less odour Interworld Pig Farm in the Philippines use Anaerobic & Aerobic treatment and less odour Dairy Farm in Wisconsin, USA use free solids for bedding Dairy Farm in Pozzoleone, Italy use free solids for bedding Dairy Farm in San Pietro in Gu’, Italy use free solids for bedding Dairy Farm in Brogliato in Vicenza, Italy use free solids for bedding BioGas Plant in Alteno in Germany use free solids for bedding Mobile units in mainland Netherlands use free solids for bedding Project Description Statement – April 2018 6 UPGRADE of existing bovine farm D327 – Munxar, Gozo with the capacity to process effluent from other farms Timing The project was instigated by a group of Gozitan farmers that approached the director of Tenaga Limited to design a project, that would solve the problem of the disposal of animal by-products (slurry). The initial discussions started in 2015, whereby data began to be collected by Tenaga to get a better view of the situation. Presently the waste management of slurry and manure, originating from cattle, swine and poultry farms in Malta and Gozo presents an environmental disposal issue.