Parliament’s committee on environment and climate change has recommended to make the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) an independent agency.

The committee made the decision while during a meeting held regarding the Gulhifalhu reclamation project.

After reviewing the concerns over the reclamation project, the committee is to compile a 20-point report which includes measures to strengthen “environmental governance” for such projects.

In relation to the Gulhifalhu project, the committee urged the project administrator to ensure that all measures mentioned in the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) are followed, as well as any further measures that requires implementing as the situation changes.

Furthermore, it is seeking to form a temporary committee -comprising of officials from the planning and transport ministries and EPA, as well as EIA consultants and independent bodies- to make sure preparations are reinforced. This committee is to meet once a week, to tackle the challenges in the work.

This temporary committee is to monitor the reefs in the reclamation area, and compile a report which should be forwarded to the committee on environment and climate change. They should also take photos and videos of the area, which are to be publicized.

While work is underway to reclaim 16 million cubic metres in Gulhifalhu, which is being developed as an industrial island, several organizations have voiced concern over its environmental impact.

Those that expressed concern over the reclamation project include speaker and former president, Mohamed Nasheed’s Maldives Coral Institute.

The institute, along with other NGOs, had submitted letters to the parliament highlighting concerns over “the lack of enforcement of the Environmental Act and EIA regulations”. It further called to immediately stop the dredging and reclamation work “until slit screens are put in place to adequately contain the sediment plume, and until the ongoing coral bleaching period is over”.

Save the Beach Maldives also called to “mitigate the direct impacts to reef of Villimale' and the dive sites in the impact zone”.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih had, back in June 2019, revealed that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would be made into an independent institution, adding that his administration’s highest priority will be to “preserve the environment”. He said that this was the very reason that a ministry solely dedicated to the Environment was established.