Environmental NGO Flimkien ghal Ambjent Ahjar (FAA) has condemned the destruction of trees near the Addolorata cemetery, as part of the ongoing Marsa junction project, saying that many of them could have been saved.
“Recent EU statistics show that Malta's performance on reducing air pollution is one of the worst in the EU. Statistics indicate that around 1in 5 of people dying young age did do as a result of long-term exposure to pollution. Yet instead of acting to reduce the use of private vehicles, control emissions on commercial vehicles and plant more trees, this Government is doing just the opposite,” FAA said in a statement.
“Studies have consistently shown that building more roads does not solve traffic problems but encourages more car use, aggravating the situation. Yet Government has been unable to provide efficient public transport, resulting in long queues at bus-stops and extended travel times.
Several cities around the world that are already rich in trees including Los Angeles, New York, Shanghai and London recently launched projects to plant a million trees and achieved their goal in record time. Instead in Malta our few trees are being destroyed on an unprecedented scale. The latest project to massacre trees is the Luqaroads project, which will destroy some 500 trees, including the iconic old cypresses that line the road overlooking the Addolorata Cemetery. These cypresses are protected trees, being over 50 years old.”
FAA said that when the Salina road project proposed to destroy all the trees forming the tree canopy, it had intervened and the Transport Authority had altered the plans to have the trees form the centre strip.
“FAA is convinced that with some extra thought and effort, some, if not all, of the trees on the Addolorata Road could be saved.”
“To make matters worse, in addition to over 300 trees to be destroyed on the arterial roads, a further 150 trees are to be removed from the St Thomas Moore School grounds, supposedly to make way for a jogging track.
How can the authorities justify this destruction, when Santa Lucija already has a jogging track in a different location and when the jogging track can weave between the trees, saving most of them?”
FAA said these trees alongside the school presently shield the students from vehicle pollution which is proven to stunt lung development in children. Without the trees to screen them, the students will be exposed to higher levels of toxic emissions which contribute to heart problems, strokes and fertility issues
“Discussions with residents and local councils of the inner Grand Harbour area in 2014 had revealed that all were concerned about the conservation of the few remaining green spaces left in the area. The resultant Local Communities’ Charter ‘Safeguarding and Sharing our Open Spaces’ steered by IRMCo promoting a more holistic approach for the Grand Harbour area was presented to the MEPA chairman and the President who also signed the charter.
Flimkien għal Ambjent Ahjar calls on Minister of Transport Ian Borg, Santa Lucia Local Council, the Planning Authority, the Environment Resources Authority and the President of Malta to put a stop to this senseless tree destruction, and instead plan to plant many more trees in Malta and Gozo.”