An NGO has warned the government it will make a complaint to the European Commission if trees in Independence Square (It-Tokk), Victoria, are uprooted.
Environment group Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar (FAA) has also applied for an injunction against the planning authority in its bid to save the trees from the axe.
Fortunately in Qala the trees were saved after the intervention of the Church, whereas in Nadur the council halted works
Addressing a news conference in front of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority in Floriana, FAA coordinator Astrid Vella said it was unacceptable that an EU-funded embellishment project in Victoria would be used to destroy trees that were half a century old.
She noted that the original permit only allowed a light pruning, but since then the FAA has been made aware of possible plans to ask Mepa to remove the trees.
Ms Vella questioned whether the plan to remove them was intended to allow nearby commercial establishments to encroach on part of the square.
Removing the trees would negatively impact the environment, as trees mitigate the effects of pollution, the FAA said.
Ms Vella said next month the NGO would be bringing over an arborist from the UK to give advice as part of its drive to take a proactive approach.
The FAA expressed concern that more trees on Gozo could be facing the axe, following plans to uproot them for embellishment projects in Nadur and Qala.
“Fortunately in Qala the trees were saved after the intervention of the Church, whereas in Nadur the council halted works to wait for the advice of the UK arborist,” Ms Vella said.
Former Mepa acting director Alfred Baldacchino, who was at the news conference, noted that in its manifesto Labour had pledged to safeguard trees, including those in inhabited areas.
“If Mepa were to give the green light to uproot these trees, it would signify that the government had lost its vision for the environment,” Mr Baldacchino said.
The FAA also questioned plans to re-introduce a legal notice to safeguard trees, which was floated last year by Environment Minister Leo Brincat .
The NGO complained that after being invited to give its proposal before August last year, no further feedback was ever received from the minister.