BirdLife Malta has said that it is disappointed to note that not enough importance has been given to measures directly related to biodiversity and nature protection in Budget 2020.

In a statement, it said that this includes a call made by BirdLife Malta – supported by several other NGOs – for the establishment of a specialised `Wildlife Crime Unit’ with the necessary resources to combat crimes related to nature in Malta.

BirdLife reacted positively to the fact that, “finally the Government will be publishing the studies related to the Gozo tunnel project and we look forward to seeing what these studies say.”

The news that there will be an increase in afforestation projects in urban areas, was also met with satisfaction by the NGO, who said that, “we think that this is a step in the right direction as we also welcome the proposal to roof over part of Regional Road and the Santa Venera Tunnels where a much-needed recreational open space will be created in this area.”

“The most significant environmental changes being announced in this budget are those in relation to incentives to ban the use of plastic and those which will enable Malta to fulfil its EU obligations in relation to single-use plastics,” said BLM.

It added that, “we agree with the ban on the importation and production of plastic bags, plastic cutlery, plastic straws and single-use plastic plates from the start of 2021 and the total ban on their distribution and sale after 1st January 2022.”

“We also applaud the subsidy scheme launched by the Government to help shops to set up Green Corners, where part of the shop is dedicated to the sale of food products and others by weight using containers provided by the clients,” said BLM.

Other incentives and initiatives welcomed by BirdLife Malta were those to reduce the impact of cars on air pollution, the launch of new ferry connections as alternative means of transport, the introduction of a lower tariff and residential charging points for electric vehicles and the news that a final date will soon be recommended after which polluting vehicles will not continue to be imported to Malta.

BirdLife Malta said that however, it is “somewhat disappointed that the budget practically ignores the protection of natural habitats, in particular ODZ, which do not seem to be important for the Government.”

BirdLife Malta concluded by saying that it will “continue with its efforts to convince the Government to take the protection of Malta’s biodiversity seriously – something which, so far at least, does not seem to feature in any way on the national agenda.”

Photograph: BLM

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