Environment Authority reacts as accuracy of air quality monitors after Magħtab fire is questioned

Updated 5.52pm with ERA explanation below - Air quality monitors recorded no spike in pollution during last month’s landfill fire, raising concerns about the system’s accuracy.    But the Environment Authority (see below) insisted that there was no pollution because of meteorological conditions. It also stressed that its monitors are well calibrated.  Government sources said a request for the air quality readings had been made by the Environment Ministry after waste from black and grey bags had caught fire at the Wasteserv plant in Magħtab.  The fire had prompted a public health hazard alarm with large swathes of the island put on alert by the health authorities about the possible impact of the fumes. The government sources said they were surprised how no special air monitoring had been carried out in the area after the fire, which had covered several localities in a dark cloud. They were even more concerned about how the established monitoring centres had shown normal readings for the entire day. “The concern is that if there is a major air pollutant in the central area of the island, this would not be recorded. If a fire of this magnitude can happen and there is no record,...