Blue Lagoon’s digital twin: BALANCING nature and toURISM

Blue Lagoon, the cherished jewel of Malta’s islands, is taking a bold step into the future. The Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) has appointed Mizzi Studio to deliver its Ecological Restoration and Tourism Plan for the Blue Lagoon, Comino. 

The project is part of an ongoing plan aiming to restore, upgrade, and protect the delicate ecosystem of the Blue Lagoon and preserve its natural beauty for generations to come. The Blue Lagoon is one of Malta’s most widely recognised natural sites for its crystal-clear waters and surrounding coastal garigue habitat. It is a designated Natura 2000 protected area under the EU's conservation network. 

For the first time, a full Digital Twin of the lagoon has been created by Mizzi Studio, using advanced photogrammetry and Unreal Engine technologies. The Digital Twin enables the study and safeguarding of the Blue Lagoon’s unique ecology with millimetre precision to better plan sensitive interventions alongside the opportunity to share the model openly with stakeholders and the public for agreed collective action.

What is a digital twin? 

A Digital Twin is a virtual model of a real-life object or place. Digital Twins play a powerful part in understanding a place in order to best protect it. Creating a recognisable digital version of a landscape becomes a tool that can be shared by all stakeholders in a project, leading to far better understanding and experience in the future of the place.

The Blue Lagoon, Comino is undergoing a transformation to ensure the site is valued and protected for future generations. The Digital Twin of the lagoon created by Mizzi Studio is the first national-scale use of digital twin technology in eco-tourism planning. The Digital Twin pushes the boundaries of this technology and positions Malta as a world leader in the emergent technology of this powerful digital tool for contextual design. 

Why now? The importance of the Digital Twin

Malta is a microcosm of the challenges we are facing globally, as climate change and increasing human pressures are transforming the landscapes we most value. Tourism in Malta has long been a source of pride and prosperity, and the island recognises the importance of safeguarding the very landscapes that attract visitors. Blue Lagoon, with its Natura 2000 habitats and rich biodiversity, is under unprecedented ecological pressure.

“Blue Lagoon is the heart of our islands, our child, and like any child we must protect it. Exploring the boundaries of Digital Twin technology has given us an unprecedented ability to design with the greatest level of sensitivity to context. It allows us to understand our ecological and visual impacts in ways that would never have been possible before, ensuring that every intervention is respectful. 

Globally, many destinations are grappling with the pressures of rising tourism and environmental change but through careful design and planning, solutions can be found.” said Jonathan Mizzi, Director of Mizzi Studio and Project Architect

The project was initiated through LIDAR scanning of the site in collaboration with the University of Malta’s Forensics Department. Mizzi Studio moved into 3d photogrammetry scanning, creating a photorealistic Digital Twin to millimeter accuracy. Architectural plans are often unreadable by non-architects; the Digital Twin becomes a valuable democratic tool for ensuring everyone involved in the process to restore the Blue Lagoon has a voice strengthened by a deep understanding of the place. 

The Digital Twin of the Blue Lagoon helps us understand and appreciate the delicate ecosystem of the site, from the natural garrigue landscape to the animal and bird life that inhabit the island.

The Blue Lagoon Digital Twin is a walkable, immersive, millimetre-accurate replica of the site, built from over 4,500 drone photos, 30 hours of footage, and 2 billion data points. The digital model enables the studio to thoroughly understand the site to best assess the visual impact of proposed designs from up close to the iconic aerial shots above the island.

The Digital Twin allows Malta to study, plan and act sensitively within its context:

Study: This digital replica reveals the current state of ecological health of the Garrigue landscape and shows how visitors have impacted the site with unprecedented accuracy

Plan: It allowed the studio to design interventions in harmony with nature, directly within the existing site and coastal parameters

Act: These tools mean that they are able to fully share their proposals with stakeholders and the Maltese public with full transparency and clarity for consultation.

Setting a global precedent

Restoring the Blue Lagoon through sensitive and rigorous planning represents a paradigm shift. Using Digital Twins for nature conservation and public participation offers opportunities and solutions that can be applied to all other global areas of outstanding natural beauty that are in need of protection and ecological rehabilitation.