State of the environment

What are the forces driving environmental change in Malta?
¤ Malta's population has largely met its basic material needs and it is demand for additional consumption that is now placing significant strain on natural processes.

¤ The rising number of motor vehicles has serious implications for the environment, human health and the economy, in terms of air pollution, land take-up, biodiversity loss, noise, fuel consumption, road accidents, waste generation and congestion costs.

¤ Only by decoupling Malta's accelerating energy demand from economic growth can environmental targets and objectives related to air pollution and climate change be met. While using a cleaner fuel mix has had positive effects on air quality, there is still signifi cant potential for further shifts. Malta is still far from reaching EU renewable energy targets, which the national energy plan that will soon be published will address.

The State of the Environment Report 2005 is a Mepa publication available on www.mepa.org.mt