Wednesday, 10th March 2010 - 14:20CET

Government launches process for environmental policy

The government has launched an 18-month process that will lead to the publication of a national environmental policy.

"The country has various sectoral policies and EU directives which have to be respected, but we need a policy that goes a step further and helps set the environmental agenda," Parliamentary Secretary Mario de Marco said at the launch.

He explained that Malta currently had policies on, among others, air quality, water and GMOs, but the government's vision was to have a holistic and better coordinated policy that would be easier to communicate to people and which would drive sustainable development.

The policy, he said, would help the country identity opportunities by creating synergy with other areas such as tourism, waste management and the health sector.

Dr de Marco said the policy process would include data collection on the state of the environment, wide ranging consultation, as well as a review of some 200 EU directives and 2,000 obligations imposed by the EU.

It was hoped that even before the 18-month process was concluded, a number of environmental initiatives could be announced, the Parliamentary Secretary said.

He also announced that the government was beefing up the Mepa law enforcement role and 45 new people would be engaged in the Environment Protection Directorate over a period of time.

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Article © Allied Newspapers Ltd., printed on Monday, September 6, 2010. This article is for personal use only, and should not be distributed.

Comments

J. Fiorentino(on 10/3/10)

Around twenty years ago the Malta Coucl for Science and Technology (MCST) held a national conference on Integrated Resource Management (IRM). This is a planning and decision making process that coordinates resource use so that the long term sustainable benefits are optimized and conflicts among users are minimized. IRM brings together all resource groups rather than having them work in isolation so as to balance the economic, environmental, and social requirements of society.
Twenty years on and we are still preparing a publication that WOULD help the country to IDENTIFY opportunities by creating SYNERGY with other areas such as tourism, waste management etc.
Why not start by getting hold of the document that was published following the national conference on IRM?

adrian gatt(on 10/3/10)

will all this reform give us a break in Sliema. Several years ago, Sliema was already declared as overdeveloped and couldn't handle any more development. Today, midi and cambridge and etc.... project later there seems to be no stop to development. When one consults the upper echelons of this nation, they seem to be more worried about the right of the owner over ones land then the rights of the multitude effected by such developments. And now with 2 monstrous projects looming-villa Bonici and Town Square - the Parliamentary Secretary tells us that 'environment no longer the Cinderella of development'. Ha, whom shall we believe.

r ferriggi(on 10/3/10)

i am no expert or ''consultant'' but i know that ONE thing is FOR SURE needed BEFORE this comprehensive environmental policy is launched..............

and it is to STOP ALL THE DAMAGE THAT IS CURRENTLY BEING DONE NOW,,,,,first and foremost!!!!!!!!!!

stop the damage being done first,,,,,, and THEN work on policies.

meaning,,,,,,,, get our priorities right.

M Tabone(on 10/3/10)

Results oriented, clear message, concise and precise. Well done and hope you manage to materialise such a consolidated vision.

J brownie (on 10/3/10)

Good move - but real and visible enforcement is everything - otherwise policies don't even worth the paper they are printed on