The environment has, by now, come to the forefront of the nation’s agenda,

Public interest is on the qui vive and this is a positive matter in so far as the environmental and cultural heritage fields are concerned. Some tangible, if limited, progress has, in fact, been registered. The Maghtab monster no longer runs amok. The paving of Mdina, and the Valletta and Cottonera Waterfront projects have paid dividends. The road network has been improved in parts.

But the gaping environmental challenge is an enduring challenge. It has antagonised public opinion, which has, at times, given vent to its exasperation with street protests.

There has been rampant over-development and land abuse. Greedy speculators have progressively raped urban conservation areas and village cores right under Mepa’s nose. The baroque city of Valletta has been largely neglected and betrayed to the point that it sometimes looks like an abandoned bride.

Dumps and litter scar the countryside. Inshore seawaters suffer from marine contamination hazards, including sewage and all sorts of land based discharges. Illegal water extraction continues to deplete Malta’s mean sea level aquifer. Excessive transport use and air pollution from quarrying and building construction poison the air we breathe.

The list is endless. Malta’s environment deficit has all but overpowered the government. It could not be said that the environment has been adequately managed and regulated. This is Malta’s principal problem.

Quo Vadis?

The problem has become a hot potato on the Prime Minister’s plate – and, indeed, he has now assumed direct responsibility for the environment. His Office is now responsible for Mepa, and therefore for all planning development and environmental protection. There has been a new allocation of ministerial portfolios – but all the players will be performing under the Prime Minister’s baton. Where do we go from here?

The principles of sustainable development include a multitude of concerns at the centre of government, ranging from policy making to the method of operation, from discipline to enforcement. Such concerns must take into their stride the overriding interests of the environment lobby in order to avoid tribal warfare of the kind that has manifested itself in recent years.

All of this has been the subject of a wide-ranging study submitted to the Prime Minister last Thursday by Martin Scicluna, Director-General of the Public Policy Institute

Voluminous blueprint

The voluminous document is a veritable blueprint for action.

It departs from the premise that sustainable economic development is dependent on a proper balance between economic resources and the environment. Economic growth on its own, without environmental sustainability and social development is not progress. In order to achieve real progress, economic output must be such as to enable individuals in society to improve the quality of their lives without eroding the things that people value, such as Malta’s unique natural landscapes, historic sites, buildings and monuments, and the marine and coastal areas.

The blueprint calls for firm inter-ministerial coordination through a strongly-led Cabinet Committee under the Prime Minister and embracing both the new Ministries directly concerned, as well as other ministerial stake-holders – tourism, culture, Gozo, health, finance – at policy-making level. The Office of the Prime Minister must have the staff and structures in place to fulfil its task of drawing up a coordinate plan across all ministries, and with the authority to set priorities and to deploy resources as necessary.

The topmost challenge is the reform of Mepa that must focus on three interlocking areas: Mepa’s structure, the composition and selection of its boards and commissions, and its systems and procedures designed to ensure transparency, effectiveness and accountability. This is a mouthful.

In substance, the essential challenge lies in giving the Environment Directorate the human and financial resources to do its work properly, and to ensure that its voice is properly heard in Mepa’s deliberations. It must be given a comparable and equivalent decision-making voice to that of the Planning Directorate on development planning issues by institutionalising this administratively in Mepa’s regulations, as well as by making the necessary legislative changes.

On grounds of accountability, leadership and for better organization, it is recommended that there should be one full-time executive chairman appointed.

Civil society interests

Meanwhile, there is need for improvement in the method of selection of members to sit on Mepa’s boards and commissions to ensure that any possible conflicts of interests are removed, and that boards and commissions are composed of members who are more representative of civil society as a whole.

The size of the Mepa board should be reduced to nine members, inclusive of one Public Officer to represent the government. The Prime Minister will select the names of the proposed executive chairman and the chairmen of the commissions, after consultation and agreement with the Leader of the Opposition. In the event of no agreement, the President of Malta will be invited to resolve the issue.

The remaining members of the board, including the deputy chairman, should be nominated from the range of civil society bodies and should be people of known integrity and good judgement The Prime Minister should have the power to vet and, if necessary, to reject any nominees from these bodies He will submit their names to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Development Planning for scrutiny and approval.

The membership of the three Development Control Commissions and the Planning Appeals Board panels should be drawn from the name pool of nominating bodies as the Mepa board and follow the same selection process, with the proviso that two seats on each Commission should be specifically allocated to one nominee each respectively from the Chamber of Architects and one from cultural heritage or environment NGOs. The Planning Appeals Board should also specifically include one nominee by the Chamber of Advocates.

It is moreover recommended that regular parliamentary scrutiny of Mepa’s operational effectiveness and efficiency should be introduced.

More transparency

Other key proposals have been advanced relating to Mepa.

The EIA process needs to be established on a proper foundation and EIAs should not be waived until public consultation has been thoroughly considered.

The thresholds calling for EIAs on all major projects laid down by the EU directive should be strictly adhered to. The ‘social impact assessment’ of EIAs must become an intrinsic component of this process.

The conduct of board hearings, appeals procedures, access to information and public consultations should be transparent and above board.

The extremely sensitive issue of the abuse of loopholes in Outside Development Zone (ODZ) rules should be closed.

Mepa should draw up a policy document to give a basic level of protection to buildings of historical or architectural value outside UCAs, which have not yet been scheduled.

Aesthetic considerations

In the field of aesthetics, Mepa should take the lead in following up the proposals made by the Chamber of Architects in their report “The Urban Challenge” to promote better standards of design and aesthetics.

The effectiveness of the Advisory Committee to the Planning Authority must be enhanced and the advice of this committee should not only be sought but also acted upon.

Mepa’s policies on planning development should be used to influence and target the current excess of housing supply with a view to reducing it. There should be a review of the recent policies to raise building heights all over Malta with a view to reversing them. The policy of high-rise buildings should be revisited.

The whole ethos and culture of Mepa should be re-balanced so that the central focus is directed at building and land conservation and environment protection.

Though not a Mepa responsibility, the long-awaited revision of the Rent Act by the government should be accelerated.

The coastline should be kept free of any further development, Malta’s commitment to Integrated Coastal Zone Management as part of the Barcelona Convention should be rigorously observed.

Access by the general public to the countryside should be made truly accessible. Steps to safeguard Malta’s endangered biodiversity and nature should be enhanced. Practical management of Natura 2000 sites must be introduced.

Closer collaboration between Mepa and the Lands Department must be achieved to ensure that public land is properly safeguarded from illegal development. The position and independence of the Mepa Auditor is central to Mepa’s proper regulation and vital to its transparency and public accountability. The Auditor’s new position in the Ombudsman’s office may be a workable compromise, but the situation should be kept under review to ensure that the Auditor is able to fulfil his role efficiently and effectively.

There are other useful proposals relating to the environment that go beyond Mepa’s brief. These relate, inter alia, to the need to establish a National Water Policy, to the role of local councils and law enforcement in matters relating to the environment, and to climate change

This document is a groundbreaking exercise.

There will be many who will chant “Amen” to all it says.

It is earnestly hoped that the Prime Minister will react positively to the think tank’s constructive initiative.

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