22th January 2002

Politicians should think about environment not scoring ‘party political’ points

The recent tit-for-tat exchange on the desirability of EU membership for Malta’s environment between minister Francis Zammit Dimech and opposition spokesperson Joe Mizzi indicates, once again, that our politicians are more interested in political mileage than our environment.

Mizzi tried to argue that EU legislation was not suitable for Malta without reference to one EU Directive. The opposition spokesperson failed to substantiate the main thrust of his article and was not able to explain how the EU’s regulations would not be of benefit to Malta.

Mizzi did, however, level serious criticism against the government that minister Zammit Dimech failed to tackle in his reply. The dumping of ‘inert’ waste in quarries is both dangerous and runs contrary to EU legislation and the issue should be addressed with urgency as our water runs the risk of being contaminated. Several quarries lie close to water pumping stations and if dumping is not strictly monitored we could end up poisoned by our tap water.

Joe Mizzi was also correct to state that Malta’s waste management strategy is unnecessarily expensive. Again Zammit Dimech ignored the accusation. The strategy is expensive mostly because incineration, which has not be chosen as an option for now, is still included in the budget estimates. Removing the incinerator would cut operating costs by some 50%.

Friends of the Earth (Malta) have shown time and again that Malta can have a sustainable waste management strategy that complies with all EU directives without an incinerator. A good waste separation system coupled with composting and biological treatment would see to that.

What Mizzi failed to do is indicate what his party would do about waste if elected into government. So far the Labour party has not put forward its own ideas on the strategy adopted by government.

At the same time minister Zammit Dimech should indicate what is to be done with the 1.4 million Euro that Malta will receive for its waste management plans. The quicker the public knows and starts to reap the benefits the better.