All citizens should be given the right to sue the government should it fail to implement and enforce laws to protect the environment and air quality, two NGOs have proposed.

Friends of the Earth and Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar said the protection of the environment should be constitutionally entrenched, as it gave its proposals ahead of the June 3 general election. 

"Deprived communities are routinely cut off from nature in their surroundings and it is suffocating for our well-being as a nation," they said in a statement. 

The NGOs said outside development zones or public domain sites should be designated as no-building/no commerce zones in the constitution.

30 years on we face much greater problems than we did then

They said all Environment Resources Authority and Planning Authority boards should have 50 per cent members appointed by NGOs. Meanwhile, all ERA/PA fees for bonafide NGOs should be capped. 

Manoel Island and the former White Rocks complex should be designated public Parks and initiatives should be introduced to incentivise NGOs which work in environmental advocacy and protection of biodiversity.

Friends of the Earth Malta said it will not take government’s commitment to the environment seriously unless targets are set for sustainable water, land, energy use and pollution is reduced.

"Friends of the Earth Malta has been calling for environmental improvements since 1985 and, 30 years on we face much greater problems than we did then. While environmental awareness has increased, Malta faces a variety of environmental problems related to land use, waste, transport, agriculture, energy, the sea, and biodiversity."