I was reading the contribution made by Marco Cremona, secretary to the Malta Water Association, via the report on July 27, on the Maltese water problem, and was glad that at least he has changed his stance on agriculture.

A few months ago he published in another section of the press an article in which he debunked all farmers and agriculture and even suggested that these be pensioned off or something similar because it would be cheaper for the nation. This was prior to the E. Coli scare.

Now he is groping for a solution to the problem but came out with some very hollow suggestions.

The solution of using effluent water for irrigation would not work because of the bad reputation the products grown by that water has with the consumer. Actually such products do rot very much faster.

The solution for our problem lies in catching most of the rain water. The Ministry for Resources and Rural Affairs has no national policy leading to this solution. At one time it was even planning to spend millions to have this water thrown into the sea. I do not know what happened to the project.

We should start now catching all rain water in existing or created reservoirs. This has to be done on a national level, taking into account each square metre, because Maltese topography changes every metre. The creation of more dams in our valleys could be done right now.

Even before we have water to distribute to farmers we should create a distribution system to the agricultural areas wherever these lie. Farmers should then be offered rainwater on tap. The cost of this water would be equal to the energy spent to deliver it. The farmer would not be spending more than he spends now to extract it. The time for closing down his borehole would then arrive.

This system would create a huge synergy because areas which are dry and left arid would be turned into irrigated land with, say, olive trees. The annual amount of rain water that we get is more than enough if we catch it. But let’s at least try. This administration turned a blind eye when boreholes were dug between 1987 and 1996. Then a rush was almost encouraged prior to 2004. The situation is what it is now. The lower aquifer could be enriched by having all rain water that falls on any roof guided to wells or 60-centimetre wide boreholes 30 metres deep, towards the aquifer. A law could be enacted if there is not one.

We had better start now. Climate change is upon us. We will be facing longer droughts than the norm and very soon too. Do we have it in us to be honestly decent with the Maltese citizen for a change?