Search

The link between public policy and climate change has never been as strong as it is now. From the most recent international climate change conferences in Paris, Madrid and Glasgow to emissions regulations, resilience and adaptation, national governments forge public policies aimed at managing the impacts of climate change on primary economic sectors. This is also valid locally where manufacturing, agriculture and energy are just three important sectors that are sensitive to a changing climate. This short article describes the importance of basing our national public policies on factual information that reflects the real impact of a changing climate on our Maltese assets, and not just on an assumed, theoretical one. It aims to make public officials in the public sector aware of the limitations in the local infrastructure that deals with the documentation, archiving, provision and understanding of how physical climate parameters are changing over time and how these can be used by national authorities to redefine public policies accordingly so as to make them Malta specific. Without this knowledge there is a danger that public policies will be less effective or even counterproductive to a select number of our economic sectors, and ultimately to the quality of life of the Maltese people., peer-reviewed

Contents : 1/ Introduction -- 2/ LANFRANCO, S. & BELLIA, A. F. - Hotspot of vegetation diversity in the Maltese Islands -- 3/ FENECH, N. - The importance of Malta's valleys for birds -- 4/ BUHAGIAR, K. - Transformation of the cultural landscape in the valleys of northern Malta -- 5/ FELIX, I & PORTELLI, E. - Mapping valleys for sustainable planning and management -- 6/ DEIDUN, A., SCIBBERRAS, A. & SCIBERRAS, J. - The challenge of non-indigenous species -- 7/ GAMBIN, B. & PATISSIER, R. - Influence of environmental conditions on the Great Reed invasion -- 8/ CALLEJA, E., SAPIANO, M. & CUTAJAR, A. - Strengthening the climate resilience of Wied il-Fiddien through ecological restoration -- 9/ VELLA, S. - Rehabilitation and regeneration of Wied Għajn Żejtuna -- 10/ Glossary, An interconnected labyrinth of valleys, referred to locally as ‘widien’, meander their way through the Maltese Islands. They vary from broad, gently sloping formations, born out of tectonic movements, to narrow, deep, and steep-sided ravines that largely result from erosion. The widien are essentially seasonal watercourses, fed by runoff during the wet season and lying dry for most of the summer. There are a few exceptions, such as Wied il-Baħrija, where spring-flow supports a trickle of freshwater all year round. These valleys provide a home for different species of fauna and communities of vegetation that are found only within watercourses and their immediate vicinity. These plant communities are known as riparian flora. There are two major types of riparian flora: hydrophytes, which are species that need to be fully or partially submerged in water, and non-submerged littoral flora, which grow mainly on the banks of the watercourses. Maltese valleys also host a number of other specialist plant species, such as those that thrive in rocky environments. Throughout history, water in valley beds has attracted human settlement and agricultural activity. Malta’s valleys have long been used as a source of irrigation and drinking water, as well as convenient waste disposal sites. Other common uses include transport routes, grazing and recreation. The publication of this book, co-financed through the LIFE IP Project Optimising the Implementation of the 2nd RBMP in the Malta River Basin District (LIFE 16 IPE MT 008)1, is intended to guide the reader to discover the Maltese islands’ watercourses and their value and contribution to society. The information provided is not only to create awareness of the rich diversity of flora and fauna but also on their vulnerability, and will hopefully raise awareness to reverse negative trends. Only through education and awareness to the greater public in hand with the authorities could such gems be preserved for future generations to enjoy., peer-reviewed

As a densely populated island with limited land area and natural capital, Malta faces specific challenges, principally those related to planning and use of land space and the sustainable management of environmental resources (ERA, 2018). These concerns create both challenges and opportunities for eco-innovation especially in the preservation of water resources, the management of waste and improvements in air quality (EC, 2019a; Ministry for Finance, 2019). The steady population rise is mainly attributable to positive net migration and the population density, at 1,495 inhabitants per square kilometre in 2017 is well-above the EU28 average of 117.8 (Eurostat). This is placing increasing pressures on the islands’ resources and in particular on transport infrastructures and water and energy demand. In addition, over-abstraction of ground water, due in part to urbanisation and to uncontrolled extraction, is contributing to poor groundwater quality (EEA, 2018)., peer-reviewed

This article analyzes the impacts of ENGOs with respect to Maltese climate change policy in an EU context. In particular, focus is made on the politics of climate change in Malta and the EU in the first five years following the country’s EU accession, which led to the setting of energy emissions targets by 2020. The main conclusion of this article is that ENGOs formed part of an EU-wide hegemonic formation on climate change, wherein a common position with binding emissions targets was reached. The common position was signified around the discourse of ecological modernization. EU multi-level governance provided an opportunity for ENGOs to put forward discourses for climate-change adaptation., peer-reviewed

This paper investigates the impact of Malta’s European Union (EU) accession on Environmental NGOs (ENGOs). For this purpose, environmental politics in relation to Malta’s EU accession are analysed. This is carried out by focusing on a selection of issues involving Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations (ENGOs) (land development; climate change; hunting of birds and fishing of ‘blue fin’ tuna), as well as through data involving interviews with ENGO representatives. This paper verifies whether EU accession has effected lobbying by ENGOs; whether EU accession has enhanced the empowerment of ENGOs; and whether EU accession has led to the institutionalisation of ENGOs., peer-reviewed

Various important historical documents have emerged which have left an impact on the world. One of these is Agenda 21, which is an important tool for policy-makers and environmental managers for bringing about Sustainable Development. For a long time it has been widely established that education plays a highly significant role in Sustainable Development, and inevitably this noteworthy discussion leads to school contexts. In this scenario, the validity of using Agenda 21 is highlighted and presented as a tool that can be used by environmental managers within the school whereby students from a very young age can start acting and promulgating Sustainable Development. With this in mind, Sustainable Development is expressed as four-pillared and intercultural management is viewed as an important field for social cohesion and justice, particularly within the school environment. The study also provides a strategic intercultural and environmental management plan tailor-made for a particular school in Malta. Both quantitative and qualitative research techniques were carried out to establish the context and to increase the success rate for this, long-term plan inculcating intercultural and environmental management practices. To reinforce Sustainable Development in schools, this study recommends among others, to enhance links between schools and the community, to form a database as reference and inclusion of interculture in the National Strategy for Sustainable Development in Malta. Considering the focus on innovative pedagogies and applied sustainable development, this paper will be useful for lecturers and teachers that intend to develop strategic sustainable development plans in their communities or institutions., peer-reviewed

Chapter 12, Recent good practice has highlighted the need for evidence-based policy in all fields, including that of the environment (1). There is an ongoing need for reliable information to inform the policymaking process. A strong evidence-base also contributes to more robust design and assessment of policy options. In the environmental field, the putting in place of environmental monitoring processes and the regular publication of state of the environment reports have contributed significantly to providing a better evidence base for policy. The EU-funded ERDF project has played an important role in upgrading national environmental monitoring programmes, and further related projects also addressing particular thematic areas in the environmental field are planned for the next structural funding period up to 2020. This paper puts forward a set of orientations for the future to be taken into account in order to improve the evidence base to support national environmental policy-making processes, including the monitoring of existing policies, now that the data from the ERDF monitoring project is becoming available. The basis of the analysis is the authors’ work on monitoring the implementation of the National Environment Policy and previously on state of the environment reporting., peer-reviewed

Why Future Preparedness and why even attempt to look into the future at a stage where the state of the environment is in such a constant rate of flux? Trying to understand what may come to pass tomorrow only takes a form when we know our present and how today is affected by our yesterday. Society is in transition and at a very rapid pace too. We cannot embrace one without the others and preparedness has never been more crucial. From understanding the diverse and contrasting social realities and the interactions between the environment, human capital and landuse to fathoming out the implications of legislative and operational tools on social cohesion, society faces major challenges. Challenges that can be understood through a dichotomy of interlinking activities: those purely based on scientifi c research and those striving for the implementation of on-the- ground operational processes. Th is publication seeks to help us understand such worlds and delves into a review of the past, describes the state of current knowledge whilst striving to help open for readers a window into future activities: through spatial descriptors. The publication is structured into three sections that help readers to understand the context within which such a publication is set: the first related to descriptors pertaining to the implementation of two major projects, the second section related to research that laid the groundwork for the present, whilst the final section looks forward on new societies and research challenges., peer-reviewed

This report gives an overview of green policies and strategies launched and carried out throughout the international economic crisis. It introduces the context in which green employment promotion strategies take place, and then discusses major policies and measures implemented in the sector, namely the National Environmental Policy, the Green Public Procurement National Action Plan, investment aid for business development and environmentally friendly innovation, and investment in energy-saving incentives for the domestic sector., peer-reviewed

This essay provides a brief discussion of challenges related to environmental and land use policies in Malta., N/A

Malta is characterised by its small size, its climatological parameters and its long coastline. This sets the context for specific eco-innovation activities to be stimulated and developed not only for local use but also for international replication. Europe is going through difficult economic times which have had their knock on effect on most countries of which Malta is no exception. However, during 2010, GDP registered an increase of 3.2% in real terms and 6.2% in nominal terms. Malta’s Research and Innovation (R&I) strategy, Malta’s draft Energy Policy, Malta’s Operational Programme I as well as the financial incentives offered by Malta Enterprise set the context for the development of eco-innovation within the headline innovation bracket. In fact both Research and Development (R&D) and eco-innovation are recognised as a pillar for Malta’s economic development. Malta ranked in 17th place in the 2011 Eco-Innovation Scoreboard, up a place from last year. This shows that whilst Malta is registering notable progress, it is still catching up on the EU-27 average. Notwithstanding, it ranks 4th amongst the New Member States, a comparative rank worth mentioning. Government R&D outlay in environment and energy is the lowest with respect to the EU-27 in absolute and relative terms. Malta ranks 21st in the percentage of R&D personnel and researchers compared to total employment and fares poorly in the number of registered patents, the number of environmental management systems adopted as well as in the number of academic papers related to eco-innovation. Malta fares positively in the media coverage that it gives to eco-innovation events which demonstrates the growing interest in pursuing this avenue of growth. Malta ranks joint 1st with Luxembourg in material productivity and joint 1st with Ireland in energy productivity. The Water Footprint Network places Malta in 16th place. Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Water Resources, Tourism and Public Awareness seem to be the areas where most of the potential for eco-innovation lies. Malta’s dependency on imported fossil fuels, its scarcity of water resources, the newly available water resource resulting from full treatment of sewage prior to disposal which can mitigate water scarcity and the economic impact of tourism are the main factors which drive eco-innovation to focus on these areas. Malta’s incentives schemes could also be a catalyst to foster further growth. Although it has been identified that Malta is still in the early stages of tackling eco-innovation a focus on more tangible deliverables is required. Whilst its limited size and resources make it a country where replication activities are more easily grown, the innovative capacity needs to grow further. Malta’s human resources are considered to be of very high quality and it is therefore only logical to target efforts towards increasing this pool with a view to retain a competitive edge in the skills to cost ratio of such an important human capital asset., peer-reviewed

This report focuses on the employment dimension of economy greening in Malta. It examines the effects of economy greening on the labour market. Then it reviews labour market policy developments in the sector., peer-reviewed

The following part of the Report will give a brief overview of the policy and legislative structures as related to the environment. The Maltese environmental legislation stems from obligations set out in the Environmental Protection Act of 1991. The Structure Plan & the Development Planning Act 1992 is another important legislative instrument. Moreover, Malta is party to a number of International Conventions and as such has a number of international commitments. It has become increasingly clear that the EPA has certain shortcomings; eg. it does not cover air quality aspects and sustainable waste management. Moreover, parts of the EPA have never been brought into effect. Difficulties have been experienced by the EPD to make certain Government Departments understand, let alone implement, basic environmental policies, including those related to biodiversity conservation., peer-reviewed