Car free day is a voluntary activity, he said. “If more people had participated in the activity instead of using their car just the same, then there would not have been any bottlenecks.

“People have to start asking themselves; what am I doing for the environment?” the minister stressed. “The environmental commitments Malta has taken with the EU are really commitments we have taken with ourselves and future generations.”

The minister was speaking at the opening of a seminar on pilot studies of packaging, import and export waste statistics, organised by the National Statistics Office. The aim of the research is to generate data on the quantities of packaging materials imported and exported as well as the resulting waste generated.

The study will also investigate ways in which packaging materials can be reduced and better managed.

The seminar was attended by a number of NSO officials and experts from various environmental agencies as well as from the Malta Environmental and Planning Authority, Wasteserv and the Federation of Industry.

At present, only estimates of the quantities of packaging material imported are available. However, in line with directives 94/62/EC and 2004/12EC, Malta now has to compile detailed statistics on the quantities of packaging being recovered and recycled.

The NSO has already started working on the project and has carried out a considerable amount of groundwork. In fact, the seminar was intended as a consultation platform during which those involved could agree on the best data collection methods.

The project will be fully functional in 2006 and WasteServ will help the NSO to collect data from the packaging industry regarding the materials being imported, generated and disposed of.

Wasteserv has applied for funds under the technical assistance for the development of implementation systems for the producer responsibility directive. Among other things, the funds will be used to provide training for producers, social partners and others involved in the sector.

These statistics will help WasteServ better manage the development of waste management facilities such as bring-in-sites, the civic amenity sites and the overhaul of the St Antnin treatment plant, said Mr Pullicino.

The government had taken the first steps towards better waste management, with the recent introduction of eco-contribution, the minister said, adding that he was open to suggestions from experts as to how the government could further channel its taxation towards ecological consumer patterns in the 2005 budget.