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Landforms and Processes at II-Majjistral Park and Its Environs

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Book cover Landscapes and Landforms of the Maltese Islands

Part of the book series: World Geomorphological Landscapes ((WGLC))

Abstract

Malta’s Il-Majjistral Park, located on the main island’s northwest coast, represents a striking landscape full of contrasts, consisting of plateaux, valleys and unique boulder scree slopes that plunge into the Mediterranean Sea. Vegetation cover mostly comprises low garrigue with some maquis scrub. The seasonal contrast in vegetation cover is one of the notable features of the Park. The long summer drought facilitates the identification of geomorphic processes, because of the reduction in vegetation cover. Landforms include cliff-retreat features, block slides, caves with collapse features and sediment accumulations in bays. The area is a valuable tourist resource and has been subjected to intense development pressures, but it is argued that these must not be allowed to occur at the expense of the agricultural and cultural value of the area. This chapter makes the case for geomorphological studies having a role to play in safeguarding the environmental integrity of the Park.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The Park tal-Majjistral was declared a national park by the Government of Malta (Legal Notice 251) in September 2007.

  2. 2.

    The Rdum Majjiesa to Ras ir-Raħeb Marine Protected Area was the first marine Natura 2000 site in Malta and was designated in 2008. This now offers some officially protected status to the coastline along the North West coast of Malta. Its effectiveness has still, however, to be established.

  3. 3.

    The Maltese archipelago has an extremely rich archaeological heritage including several megalithic temples and settlements. The oldest settlements, at Ta Hagrat and Skorba, are located in the vicinity of the Park and have been dated back to ca. 7000 years BP. These are considered to be amongst the oldest free-standing structures in the world.

  4. 4.

    Perhaps the most prominent UCL plateau in this locality is the Xaghra l-Hamra (i.e. the Red Plateau).

  5. 5.

    The revised geological map of Malta (Oil Exploration Directorate 1993) places the Greensand Formation within the Ghajn Melel member of the Upper Coralline Limestone formation because of its patchy distribution and shallow thickness.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, University of Malta, Tal-Qroqq, Msida, MSD, 2080, Malta

    Avertano Rolé

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  1. Avertano Rolé
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Correspondence to Avertano Rolé .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts, University of Malta, Msida, Malta

    Ritienne Gauci

  2. Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts, University of Malta, Msida, Malta

    John A. Schembri

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Rolé, A. (2019). Landforms and Processes at II-Majjistral Park and Its Environs. In: Gauci, R., Schembri, J. (eds) Landscapes and Landforms of the Maltese Islands. World Geomorphological Landscapes. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15456-1_24

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