From 2004 to 2009, the different waste streams which were generated in Malta necessitated treatment through various disposal and recovery operations. Disposal operations for non-hazardous mineral waste, mainly generated by construction and demolition activities, treated an annual average of 81.8 per cent of the total waste managed in approved facilities during the period under review.

Waste disposed of in non-hazardous public landfills has shown a fluctuating trend between 2004 and 2009. The increases which were registered in 2007 and 2008 may be attributable to the disposal of municipal waste, which increased annually by 21.0 and 7.4 per cent during these two years. These increases were due to the reduced capacity of the Sant’Antnin Waste Treatment plant which was being refurbished. In 2009 the amount of landfilled municipal waste decreased by 4.0 per cent over the previous year, coinciding with an increase in the amount of municipal waste treated at the Sant’Antnin plant. Municipal waste going to the Ghallis landfill also went down due to an increase in waste amounts diverted from disposal through the collection of separate waste materials in civic amenity sites.

Preliminary information suggests that from 2004 to 2009 the disposal of non-hazardous mineral waste has shown a considerable decline.

Another aspect of solid waste management is the recovery of waste carried out at the Sant’Antnin plant by means of material separation and composting. From the results presented in Table 3, two distinct phases in the plant’s operation can be discerned. From 2004 to 2006 the plant was functional and treated waste was on the increase. However, in 2007 an abrupt decrease of 61.4 per cent over the previous year was recorded due to the plant’s upgrading works. By February 2008 the new Materials Recovery Facility was commissioned, but the composting plant was not yet in service. In 2009 the input of recyclable waste advanced by 42.4 per cent when compared to the previous year.

Since the incineration plant’s inception in 2008 the bulk of treated waste comprised animal carcasses originating from the civil abattoir and private slaughterhouses. In 2009, 93.7 per cent of the total incinerated waste originated from these sources. Throughout the period under review, this facility was the only one which processed hazardous waste. In 2009, 5.5 per cent of the waste input to this plant was classified as hazardous.

Separate collection of waste fractions has gained momentum during the period under review, with various options being made available to the general public. In 2009, the bulk of separated waste was collected from civic amenity sites. During 2009 the waste collected from these sites registered an increase of 30.6 per cent when compared to the previous year. On the other hand, the collection of separate waste fractions from bring-in sites decreased by 13.2 per cent when compared to 2008. Meanwhile, the increase in waste amounts collected through the grey bag scheme in 2009 amounted to 2,513 tonnes.

Permalink: Waste disposal in public landfills dropped by 6.1% in 2009