Malta’s countryside has long been under siege. Threats of development, selfish individuals illegally dumping waste or bulky items, and just in general the sheer amount of litter one finds when taking a stroll in some of Malta’s open spaces.

Some people took it upon themselves to clean up after our mess voluntarily, such as the eNGO Zibel. They should be praised for the work they have done over the past years, as should Cami Appelgren and others like her who worked to keep Malta clean.

Other people and eNGOs fight to protect Malta’s countryside from the encroachment of buildings, a fight that often makes headlines and sees objectors face off against developers at the Planning Authority.

Last March, when Covid-19 first struck Malta, the general public quickly became aware of the importance of Malta’s countryside, and realised just how small it is given the amount of people present in such areas during that period.

Many have come up with proposals of how to better protect it, and one such suggestion is the setting up of environmental rangers.

Different people have made such a call over the past years, including Zibel and also PN Whip Robert Cutajar.

Zibel Chairman Andrew Schembri said that such a project would create green jobs, mobilize and empower young adults to take up a career along the environmental path and help build a greater sense of ownership amongst Maltese and their natural habitats.

“The rangers could be tasked with enforcement and reporting of infringements as well as basic checks for invasive species in Natura 2000 sites. This could be piloted in Natura 2000 sites, and then extended to known illegal dumping sites and frequented green areas, which would also help NGOs and the respective Ministries work closer on solving issues of this sort. These roles also give children growing up an authoritative figure in the environment to look up to, a familiar identity that emanates the values we are all trying to push,” Schembri said.

The PL government last legislature had made an important step with regards to plastic pollution, with announcing plans to ban certain types of single use plastic. A definite good move in the right direction, given the amount of such substances found in Malta’s countryside, but also in Malta’s coastal waters.

The government already has a department tasked with cleaning up areas filled with rubbish, but perhaps the time has come to take the next step in prevention. This is where such rangers could come in, guarding Malta’s green areas and preventing such dumping in the first place.

Malta is a small country, and is overpopulated. Thus guarding the countryside should be a priority. During the summer, our public beaches are packed and litter is a problem. During spring and autumn, people enjoy going on nature walks along trails and going off the beaten path. Nobody likes to see litter or construction waste.

While the idea of environmental rangers is a good one and should be introduced, we must also look to our own habits.  If we smoke, do we throw our cigarette butts on the floor? Do we discard waste on be each properly in bins or just leave it lying around? Do we toss litter out from our car windows? Cleaning up Malta begins at home.