The government needed to step up efforts to conserve local biodiversity, according to Nature Trust Malta, who made the appeal to mark World Environment Day being celebrated tomorrow.

“Nature Trust is noting how our natural heritage is losing its battle to unsustainable development, illegal dumping, lack of law enforcement and no political will,” the NGO said in a statement yesterday.

The recent positive development at the COP21 conference should be acknowledged locally, Nature Trust said, calling for more commitment on issues of climate change.

A national policy on the proper way to prune trees was also urgently needed, following a series of incidents involving heavy pruning. In this regard, the NGO is urging the government to identify degraded land for afforestation projects.

“Educating our children on the food they eat is not enough: we need to provide safe places where children can enjoy the natural environment and be active,” the NGO said.

The organisation also highlighted the importance of safeguarding land situated outside development zones, adding that this should be “enhanced rather than industrialised further”.

On World Environment Day, the United Nations encourages worldwide awareness and global action for the protection of the environment.

Since 1974, when the day was first celebrated, World Environment Day has grown to become a global platform for public outreach, widely celebrated in over one hundred countries.