Making tourism work for Malta

Tourism and environment are interdependent. Only a healthy and clean environment will attract tourists. A good percentage of the income derived from tourism should be channelled to ensure the right environment.

The government, both central and local, and the tourist industry as the two main stakeholders must invest in providing and maintaining an acceptable environment if tourism is to continue to be a great foreign currency earner, a big boost to the economy.

Malta more than Gozo is facing a very serious problem indeed. Open spaces and the countryside must be protected. The uninterrupted building over indulgence must be halted. Unless we do not care for the disappearance of our beautiful scenic spots.

Monstrous landfills

The Maghtab monstrosity must be not only halted. It must be removed as a matter of great urgency. And this independently of whether we do join the EU or not. Land reclamation has been mooted in this column and elsewhere. It seems to have fallen on deaf ears. It is as if the extension of Dutch territory is not known in our island in the Mediterranean.

Some excuses are being flouted about marine flora and fauna as if the health of the people of Malta is not far more important. The landfill is certainly not an attraction to foreigners who come here as tourists. This context brings to mind the lack of differentiation of domestic waste at source. There was once such a plan but it seems that, like all good intentions, it fell by the wayside.

A serious education campaign is needed in schools, on the media, in towns and villages. This is to make everyone aware that the streets, roads and countryside are not litter resorts. This is to prevent the throwing of cigarette butts, packets, bottles, plastic cups, paper bags on centre strips. Tourists judge us not just by our hospitality. They are dismayed by what they see how we ill-treat our environment.

State of the roads

Enemies of the environment are road pollution and its toxic fumes. Mandatory VRT does not monitor diesel emissions and toxic fumes resulting from illicit mixture of fuel especially used by buses and trucks.

Ways and means must be found and implemented without further delay to eradicate once and for all the pollution in our roads that is visible to all especially the police and wardens. The Ministry of Communications may consider the importation of hybrid gasoline electric cars. They reduce carbon monoxide emission. This type of car is already on the roads in Japan, Europe and the United States.

The state of the roads is so obvious that one need only mention the potholes and flooding rainwater. One need not mention the inefficient construction due, most probably, to lack of supervision. Dust arising in roads constitute setbacks to tourists and locals alike. There had been an attempt at a millennium project to solve the sordid problem of inadequate road construction and proper all time maintenance. But not much progress has been evident.

MHRA objectives

At the top of the list of objectives of the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association (MHRA) have been placed "the state of the environment including the much talked about aspects from the state of our roads to the waste management issue". The new council "will be taking up the issues with renewed determination in order to convince government about the negative impact of the current state of our overall environment on Malta's main income earner.

"As part of this process (the council) commissioned an environment impact assessment, this time not for planning authority purposes but for the sole purpose of establishing, in a scientific way, the real negative effect of the environment on future flow of tourism numbers and revenue streams."

Local entrepreneurs of hotels, restaurants and localities which tourists frequent are friendly curators with adequate landscaping including the planting of trees, shrubs and open areas in a clean, less noisy environment enjoying easy access to the sea.

Eco-certification

Awareness of the environment is inculcated into hotels employees by management. They in turn realise the importance of looking after the environment which serves to favourably impress the tourists who are guests of the establishment where they are employed.

The Malta Tourism Authority developed the Eco-Certification Scheme which is based on environmental criteria founded on a European model. The scheme is for tourism accommodation establishments which will have an opportunity to be able to give better value for money to tour operators and their customers.

Tourism accommodation establishments are interested in eco-certification if they are after reducing operational costs and in reducing their impact on the environment. These establishments must be ready to commit themselves to a process of continuous improvement to reduce their impact on the environment.

The ten areas of assessment are environmental management systems, waste management, products and materials, energy use, water use, air quality, noise protection, buildings and green areas, local culture and guest information.