The Malta Ornis Committee established under Regulation 10 of the Conservation of Wild Birds Regulations on Tuesday evening recommended in principle the application of derogation under Article 9(1)(c) of the EC Birds Directive to permit, under strictly supervised conditions and in small numbers, the limited live-capture of seven species of finches in autumn 2014.
The Government sad in a statement that “the recommendation was made after the Committee considered, during 3 consecutive sessions, the detailed technical, legal and scientific submissions made by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority, the Wild Birds Regulation Unit, BirdLife (Malta) and the Federation for Hunting and Conservation – Malta (FKNK).”
The statement said that “as part of the discussion, the Committee deliberated on the legal parameters concerning this derogation, including extent of applicability of Malta’s Act of Accession, provisions of the EC Birds Directive and relevant jurisprudence. An analysis of alternatives, consideration of the requirements pertaining to “judicious use,” “small numbers,” as well as “strictly supervised conditions” and enforcement was also carried out.”
Furthermore, the Committee discussed the conservation status of the seven finch species, as well as controls to ensure protection of habitats. The Committee noted that the proposed derogation would be subject to stringent controls and limitations, and would not envisage a general continuation of trapping as it was practiced prior to 2009.
The recommendation was adopted following 5 votes in favour, 1 against and 1 abstention.
The Government said that “the Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights Roderick Galdes, has taken note of the above recommendation, as well as the detailed assessment conducted by the Wild Birds Regulation Unit, and will decide accordingly in due course.”