Establishment of a new dairy farm
Date : 2001
The main operational aim of the proposed dairy farm was to supply good quality fresh milk to Malta Dairy Products Ltd. The objective of this development proposal was to locate a farm in an area which had been earmarked by the authorities for animal husbandry. The need to have such a conglomerate of livestock units stemmed from the fact that urbanisation had encroached on traditional units with the consequence that newly established residential areas were challenging and objecting to established farms.
As per database of the Animal Husbandry Section of the Department of Agriculture within the Ministry for Agriculture and Fisheries, there were 132 dairy farms in Malta and 45 similar farms in Gozo. The national milk quota was 22, 5000 gallons per day, which is about 127 gallons per day per farm on average. In the absence of national guidelines, European Community environmental guidelines for small scale dairy farms were sought and incorporated within the farm's management system.
The site area of the proposed dairy farm had a footprint of approximately 3,000m². The farm was designed to be erected in concrete blockwork, masonry blocks and reinforced concrete slabs. The colour scheme, limewash-based for hygienic purposes, was of yellow ochre pigment so that the construction merges better with the surrounding landscape.
To facilitate a more contextual design, the farm's boundary walls were to be clad in rubble construction, typical of the remaining rural landscape, thus screening the blockwork of the boundary walls. Apertures, including the gate to the farm, were to be of metal. Given the surrounding agrarian environment, the proposed soft landscaping consisted entirely of drupes such as olive, plum and peach trees. Ivy would be grown along the rubble walls.
Click here to download the Environmental Planning Statement.