MPs insist on need to safeguard resources for future generations

Three Nationalist MPs on Tuesday emphasised the need of sustainable development, touching upon such subjects as the building industry and the need of striking a balance between development and the environment

Charló Bonnici said the Sustainable Development Bill was important for present and future generations. Everyone had to feel responsible and associate the concept with a set of values which had to safeguard resources for future needs.

Over-development of land by the construction and building industry contributed heavily to unsustainable development. The Mepa reform had slowed this trend.

Mr Bonnici said the government had taken measures to address the issue of scarce water resources including legislation, new policies and regulations on boreholes together with the introduction of a flood relief project. However a lot of storm water was still being laid to waste.

It was necessary to educate people and promote participation at local level to safeguard the island’s limited resources. Local councils had a lot to do in this regard. These could provide information and link with school projects on sustainable development. These could also introduce schemes for recycled materials and encourage better use of reservoirs and wells in local residences.

Mr Bonnici supported the Attard local council in instituting court proceedings against a quarry owner in Wied Incita who had ignored numerous Mepa enforcement notices. The use of the quarry was a clear case of unsustainable development because it caused dust pollution in the area. Pollution was also addressed by new public transport buses.

Sustainable development formed part of the revised education curriculum in environmental science and in other subjects. The Eco-skola project made many students conscious of sustainable development.

Karl Gouder (PN) said one needed to take adequate precautions to avoid negative repurcussions of doing unsustainable development.

Malta was making great strides forward in this regard. It was important to have the necessary tools to help development, while keeping the impact on future generations in mind. Climate change but due to political and commercial reasons, adequate decisions had not been taken.

Mr Gouder said sustainable development equates the responsibilty that the current generation carries in respect of future ones. One must ensure that today’s decisions are keeping this in mind.

Malta needed to speed up the process to invest in wind farms and introduce photovoltaic panels on a wider scale. Investing in such apparata was a costly feat but this was to be a priority.

Turning to property development, Mr Gouder said open spaces needed to be maintained and recreational areas preserved.

Sustainable development meant striking the balance between commercial and social requirements. He stressed the importance of social return, thus giving something back to society.

Mr Gouder deplored the way waste was disposed of. Malta was beginning to understand the disastrous methods of burning waste and the resultant hazardous emissions. The concept of re-using and recycling was also introduced in Malta.

Millions of euros were being spent on reverse osmosis. Water was also extracted from boreholes and drinking water was, by and large, processed. It was high time that more reservoirs were built.

Concluding, Mr Gouder said social sustainability should be the ultimate aim. Responsibility towards future generations was the ultimate key factor.

PhilipMifsud said that Mepa ought to better evaluate environmental benefits associated with any proposed developments and one must learn from past deficiencies. He said that he believed that the quality of buildings was improving in terms of environmental sustainability.

Air quality was also to be safeguarded and the discussion should also be extended to noise pollution. But development was necessary and was not to be stopped.

There was a need to tackle the water issue responsibly. Malta was consuming 11 million cubic litres annually. This was clearly not sustainable. The monitoring process, however, has commenced. Registered boreholes were being evaluated and if their use is not justified, these would no longer be used.

This process was necessary and ensured the sustainability of water in Malta and relevant to larger EU-wide projects linked to flood relief. As a result of such projects, Malta may benefit from water replenishment and further sustainability.