The government will be setting up an agency called Ambjent Malta (Environment Malta) on similar lines to that of Heritage Malta to coordinate and support efforts related to the protection of environmental heritage, Environment Minister Josè Herrera told parliament this evening.
He was speaking as the House debated the financial estimates of the Environment and Resources Authority.
He said that since its setting up in April last year, ERA had reviewed in excess of 1,900 planning applications.
Dr Herrera said the authority would seek to develop new regulations on alien species, GMOs, and the protection of woodland and trees. Three sites had been identified for afforestation, one of which was on Comino. Efforts were also underway to protect sand dunes at Santa Maria Bay, Comino, and to eradicate invasive and alien species from that island’s ecosystem.
Rehabilitation and embellishment works were planned for the Ballut area in Marsaxlokk, and the Magħluq area in Marsascala. The latter area would also be the subject of attempts to clean up the water and to encourage the breeding of the bużaqq (Maltese kill-fish) species of fish, which was indigenous to Malta and was the Maltese national fish.
Dr Herrera also said that a third set of maps detailing noise pollution had been commissioned, and progress had also been registered on the biodiversity strategy.
Shadow minister Karol Aquilina praised the authority for the fact that it found its feet in a very short time and for making its voice heard.
He noted that the appointment of Dr Louise Spiteri as Acting CEO of the authority violated a provision in the law which laid down that current board members could not be appointed to the role.
He also called for action to be taken on the establishment on a new approved zone for aquaculture to the northeast of Malta.
Concluding, Dr Aqulina noted that fish farm operators had agreed to relocate their operations to a new zone once it was established, by a deadline originally set to May 2017. However, this zone had not yet been established, leaving the operators unable to live up to their commitments.
Opposition MP Godfrey Farrugia hit out at the ERA for not having appealed the Mepa decision to grant a development permit for the Mirieħel towers, saying it was a near suicidal decision by the authority within its first year since this project would have a huge impact on Malta's environment and mar its skyline.
Marlene Farrugia cautioned against turning Malta into a Dubai lookalike and said the vision for Malta should be consonant with its character.