Launch of a public consultation on a draft legal notice on construction site management.
Background
The Ministry for Transport and Infrastructure through the Building Regulation Office, is launching a public consultation which is aimed at increasing awareness towards the environment around us in the construction industry.
In the past, the building industry had been accused of not giving due attention to all that was happening around it, particularly to construction site management. Over the past two and a half years, the Ministry for Transport and Infrastructure has analyzed data related to work site management where negligence was rife.
The public consultation was set up after the Ministry had examined 25 years worth of data on work site management which included both the big projects which were undertaken in our country as well as other minor ones, all of which brought a drastic change to this sector during these years.
Over the years, workers have received better training whereas the machinery and equipment used in this industry have changed considerably. The type of materials used has also changed and the strong influx of foreign influences has not only been evident in the appearance of new technologies, but also in the flow of thousands of workers who were employed in this sector over this time.
For this purpose, the Building Regulation Office (BRO) felt the need to convey through this public consultation a comprehensive message about the obligations in construction works. The role of the Building Regulation Office is to help, guide and reassure whoever decides to embark on construction works and to ensure that there is little nuisance to neighbours and no harm is caused to the environment in general.
In these two and a half years, this Office, along with all those involved in the building industry, has taken the onus to safeguard the present legislation and to study ways in which it may be improved. In the coming months the current legislation will be strengthened through the publication of a new legal notice based upon this public consultation, yet its fundamentals will remain the same as the ones we are operating with presently.
The Government is concurrently launching a public consultation with the intention of listening to the public’s opinions and suggestions as well as to organizations within the civil society, workers’ representatives, business representatives, political parties, government institutions and to all those who would like to give their contribution to this process.
The highlights of this draft Legal Notice which is being published and which may be consulted on the website www.bro.gov.mt are:-
- To decrease nuisance to the neighbours
- To decrease dust and the spreading of construction material
- To improve the visual impact of the construction works and the environment around them.
(These regulations apply to construction works which include demolishing and excavations).
- Dust control measures during construction works.
- Stone and brick cutting must take place within a closed environment like, for example, a closed structure erected temporarily on the building site which is boarded with an impermeable material.
- The use of tools equipped with a dust extraction system.
- Loose building materials (such as sand and aggregate) should be transported, deposited and stored in sealed containers.
- Construction sites and their surroundings must be kept clean at all times.
- Sanding in indoor areas must be carried out only if all external apertures are boarded with an impermeable material whereas outdoor sanding must be carried out with the use of machinery which is equipped with dust extraction and recovery systems. All areas must be totally covered around the whole working area with material that must form a barrier against the emission of dust.
- Everyone must ensure that no dust or debris falls from the construction site. It is important that all access to the site is blocked.
- Such hoarding should be made of suitable rigid material and should be no less than 8m in height and equipped with waste chutes and adequate lighting.
- Construction works are permitted between 7 am and 8 pm excluding Sundays and public holidays. No excavation or demolition works are permitted between 2.00 pm and 4.00 pm throughout the whole year.
- No excavation and demolition works are permitted in tourism zones during the period between the 15th June and 30th September as established by the Malta Tourism Authority.
Document:
Submission of input:
The Building Regulation Office invited the general public to call on the following numbers 22927134/22927634 or to send an e-mail to: bro.mti@gov.mt or to complete the online form.
The public consultation closed on Friday 29th January 2016.
Thank you for your interest and input. |