Call to take more care of valleys and fauna

Environmentalist Alfred Baldacchino has called for more care and thought in the maintenance of Malta’s valleys, urging better and more comprehensive rehabilitation.

At a discussion organised by the Church Environment Commission, Mr Baldacchino spoke about the importance of Malta’s valleys and how a number of flora and fauna endemic to certain areas were now extinct.

He queried whether any studies had been carried out on the volumes of water – the main subject of yesterday’s discussion – and whether the quantities changed over the years because of urbanisation.

Many foreign invasive plants – especially trees – were growing on the side of water courses in valleys. Some dried out the water reserves in hot weather, others were too weak to withstand floods and died while certain species replaced

These trees might look “nice” but there was a hidden price attached to them, Mr Baldacchino said.

He also cautioned against the use of heavy machinery in clean-up operations, which he said could cause harm.

Over the years, a government unit responsible for the clean-up of valleys had been set up. However, according to Carm Mifsud Borg from the Resources Ministry “the valleys had been abandoned by everyone”.

Farmers were packing their fields with soil which was then washed away with heavy rain or – the opposite – causing the fields to become water-logged which, in turn, caused the rubble walls to collapse.

Archbishop Paul Cremona said the concept of Creation was not limited to God but also applied to man who had a responsibility to help.

“Today we are also talking about theft from one generation to another – theft of resources. No one has the right to taking more resources,” the Archbishop said.