Summary
Cominotto is a 25-hectare uninhabited islet lying 100 metres off Comino’s northwest coast. It shares Comino’s Natura 2000 protections and its fate: the Blue Lagoon between the two islands draws up to 12,000 visitors a day in summer, and the Six Senses resort on Comino threatens to compound the pressure on an ecosystem already under severe strain.
Context
Cominotto is 396 metres long with a coastline of 1.72 km and a highest point of 13.4 metres. Geologically it is globigerina limestone with caves and sea stacks. The landscape is karst garigue with sclerophyllous shrubland. It has never been permanently inhabited in modern times. The Romans used it as a hunting ground.
The islet is part of the Natura 2000 designated area “Kemmuna, Kemmunett, Il-Hagriet ta’ Bejn il-Kmiemen u l-Iskoll ta’ Taht il-Mazz” - a Special Area of Conservation of International Importance and a Special Protection Area. It is also a designated nature reserve, an Important Bird Area of International and EU Importance, and a Rural Conservation Area.
The surrounding reefs host octopus, cuttlefish, moray eels, parrotfish and wrasse. Seabird species include Yelkouan shearwaters. The Maltese wall lizard is present. Rats are also established and pose a predation threat to nesting seabirds.
The Blue Lagoon pressure
The stretch of water between Cominotto and Comino is the Blue Lagoon - Malta’s most heavily visited natural attraction. At summer peak, daily visitor numbers reached 12,000 before a cap was introduced. Since May 2025, a free online booking system limits visitors to 4,000 at any given time, divided across three daily slots.
The government’s holistic proposal for the area includes removing commercial kiosks, restoring garigue landscapes, and relocating vessel operations away from the main swimming zone. Whether these measures will be enforced remains an open question.
The Six Senses resort on Comino - 16 villas, 44 pools, and approximately 800 trees slated for uprooting on the Natura 2000 site - would compound the pressure on Cominotto’s ecosystem if it proceeds. The development permit is under active legal challenge, with the next court hearing on 19 August.