Onus on the authorities to stop the litter louts

Edgar Montanaro began his letter (September 18) by writing "one is keen in pointing fingers at the authorities for the state of our country but one is not that willing to take a look within to see whether we are all contributing towards having a clean environment". He ended his letter by referring to my letter Trade Fair Extended To St Julians (September 14) implying that I am one of those who do not contribute to ameliorate the state of our environment or worse still am one of those who litter blatantly.

Back in 2006 I decided to write my dissertation on Solid Waste Management In Paceville And St Julians. This dissertation tackled a plethora of waste management issues affecting the locality and recommended ways how these issues could be tackled. As in all research involving a locality, one had to request the help of the local council, which help came in February 2007 in a short, unplanned and unprepared interview (from the mayor's side) with the mayor of the locality, that is, Peter Bonello. To make matters worse, the mayor did not have the decency to ask for a copy of the dissertation once it was completed!

Throughout the years, I have written and blogged in The Times blaming not only the authorities concerned but also the business community, tourists and Maltese alike. I tried to instil awareness among various sectors of the Paceville business community and have also taken the initiative to personally maintain and upkeep (through financial assistance given by the language school I work with) a flight of steps between St Georges Bay and the Axis discotheque. These steps, which are used day and night by hundreds of tourists, seem to be inexistent on the radar of the relevant authorities.

So much for not contributing for the well-being of the localities' environment as Mr Montonaro wrote!

Still, the ultimate blame rests on the authorities, as they need to educate its people through various means; enforcement being one of them. It is the authorities, including the local council, that need to come up with an enforcement system that penalises litter louts. Without such enforcement, littering will be here to stay and Malta's name as a tourist destination will continue to be eroded. To cope with differing demands of a highly densely populated area involving tourists, locals, language students and the business community, one needs a carefully planned and managed cleaning and enforcement system that works like clockwork. Therefore, yes, I do blame the local council for these shortcomings, as effective cleaning and enforcement should be duly set up by the council.

Again, I also blame the business community. The private sector dominated industry seems to be predominantly concentrated on profit maximization, while giving little attention to other imperative factors that influence the tourist industry. Such ideologies are resulting in a shabby environment, thus impairing the industry to move ahead!

The St Julians local council should stop crying over spilt milk. Simply remembering St Julians of yesteryear will lead them to a dead end. All the councillors knew the responsibilities and challenges involved when taking the oath to become councillors of a highly demanding locality like St Julians.

Language students are here to stay! Clubs and bars are here to stay! Restaurants are here to stay! Hotels are here to stay! Party-goers are here to stay! Foreigners and Maltese who do not give a damn about the environment are here to stay! Litter louts are here to stay too! Declaring war on certain stakeholders of the locality will lead to nowhere. It is clearly visible that the present cleaning and enforcement system lacks a coherent and coordinated approach, therefore a collective effort should be made to rope in all the stakeholders and come up with proactive and sustainable solutions that will one day end this litter problem that has plagued this locality since it became a tourist and entertainment mecca!

Finally, dear Mr Montanaro, I failed to report the bulky refuse fridges in question for two main reasons. Primarily to test the efficiency and effectiveness of this council and secondly, I did know someone who did report, but again his call fell on deaf ears!