The theft of trees planted in public places by various entities to bolster the tree cover in a largely barren island is deplorable. This is even more alarming when such trees are regularly poached by individuals. Unfortunately such theft is frequently not documented or recorded in the media.

One such case is the 300 or so indigenous trees planted less than two months ago by Malta International Airport and the Tree4U Campaign in Gudja. At least one bay laurel, one olive tree, two cypress and two Aleppo pines were stolen over successive nights around the Bettina Palace in Gudja.

At this pace, most trees will be removed over the coming months, without anyone battling an eyelid. I strongly urge the Gudja local council to install CCTV on site to deter such theft. If possible, the trees should to be replaced by MIA and the Tree4U campaigns, for the benefit of the Gudja and the wider community. I take the opportunity to once again thank these two entities for embellishing Gudja with such majestic trees.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.