Mtarfa residents alarmed by the sight of chopped down tree trunks dotting the side of the road at Mtarfa Hill can breathe easy.

The tree pruning operation, which was organised by the local council and coordinated by an environmental manager, saw workers prune a number of mature eucalyptus trees and chop down some others.

Chopped down trees were visibly sick and had been certified as such by an environmental manager before the decision to remove them was taken, a council spokesperson said.

“Some large branches had started to overhang the road, and the sick trees could have posed a risk to motorists and pedestrians as time went by,” they explained.

Diseased trees had been attacked by the eucalyptus longhorn beetle. 

The council spokesperson added that the Environment and Resources Authority had been informed beforehand and had issued the necessary permits for the works, which forced the half-day closure of Triq il-Kavallier Vincenzo Bonello to traffic. 

Mtarfa council provided Times of Malta with correspondence between it and the ERA and Plant Health Directorate, in which the latter agreed that a number of trees in the area were diseased.

Eucalyptus trees are a non-native species and one of just 10 tree types on a list of invasive species. Their roots releasing leachates into the soil which make it very hard for other plants to grow in their vicinity.

The Mtarfa council spokesperson said that it would be planting native species propagated from existing trees already in Mtarfa to make up for any chopped down eucalyptus trees.

Photo: Jonathan Borg

A beetle found inside one of the diseased trunks.

A diseased trunk of one of the trees. Photo: Mtarfa Local Council