One of the criticisms levelled at Malta is that it is shabby and dirty. Litter and the dumping of waste in the countryside are blots on the landscape. The Maltese have an unenviable reputation as litter louts.

Part of the reason is cultural. We keep our homes impeccably clean but are totally uncaring of our public spaces, which we regard as the government’s responsibility.

Recent reports about the disposal of rubbish and waste collection arrangements in the country’s capital city also show that another part of the reason for the dirty state of our country is organisational.

A comparative study of the cost of garbage collection and landfilling which looked at all local councils’ expenditure on domestic waste collection found that the cost amounted to about €4.7 million annually. Landfilling these bags cost another €3.2 million.

Valletta’s costs at €94 per resident, more than five times the national average, are an object lesson of the organisational difficulties facing many localities from Sliema, Paceville and St Julian’s to St Paul’s Bay, Qawra, Buġibba and elsewhere. Restaurants and catering establishments are the main cause. Despite Valletta having the highest concentration of catering establishments per square kilometre in Malta, the organisational and regulatory problems are similar to areas elsewhere.

Although owners of catering establishments are obliged not to leave their waste in black bags on street corners and to take them to specific sites or pay for a separate collection service, many simply do not comply. The mayor of Valletta says he is not empowered to take action against such establishments and “the one green warden on the island” has to catch the perpetrators in the act of dumping to issue a fine. The situation is Kafkaesque.

The sooner the government introduces a ‘green enforcement unit’ capable of dealing not only with Valletta’s problems but also other restaurant hotspots, the better. The need for better organisation and means of regulatory control is urgent.

But Malta is plagued by a greater long-term problem. Maltese homes are producing 25 per cent more garbage than national estimates had predicted. A study conducted by Green MT has reported that a massive 136,523 tonnes of black bags are handled every year. To meet its 2020 green targets on landfilling of 55,000 tonnes annually is now beyond Malta’s reach.

The major cause of the problem is lack of waste separation nationally. Green MT consider that unless residents and businesses are legally obliged to separate their waste, the problem will persist. The catering industry is the major abuser of the system, with establishments failing to pay for specialised waste collection services and simply abandoning their waste on street corners alongside that of residents.

Malta is facing major waste collection and rubbish disposal problems. As the population grows and citizens’ affluence and material well-being increase, the problem will escalate. Tough steps are needed if we are not to sink under a mountain of waste and have our quality of life continually blighted by the sight of smelly black bags on every street corner.

Fines for non-compliance by catering establishments together with a charge for waste collection of black bags should be considered. There is also a long overdue need to revise upwards the prices charged for using landfill sites while ensuring dumping is harshly punished.