A new government strategy published on Saturday aims to address and minimise the waste generated by construction and demolition in Malta in a holistic manner.
The strategy was announced by Environment, Climate Change and Planning Minister Aaron Farrugia (above) together with ERA Deputy Director Kevin Mercieca.
“The Construction and Demolition Waste Strategy will serve as a framework for cultural change in a sector where we need to start thinking differently about how we look at waste generated by the industry. We also need to change our attitude towards certain construction methods.
This will be done always with the aim of minimizing this type of waste as much as possible. Meanwhile, waste that we cannot avoid being generated will be recycled,” Mercieca said.
The strategy is based on four key priority areas and around 15 measures will be implemented in order to address this type of waste.
Mercieca (above) explained that this strategy aims to address the problem at source. Therefore, it will work on reducing or eliminating the waste that is generated in this industry in the first place.
A number of measures have also been dedicated to the field of waste management with the aim of improving the logistics of waste separation in relation to this type of waste. Quality management will also be addressed as this strategy aims to raise Malta’s standards within this field, Mercieca said.
He also highlighted that “with regard to the regulatory area, we are also proposing to develop a legislative sector dedicated specifically to waste generated from this industry.”
Speaking during the publication of the strategy, Minister Farrugia highlighted that the government has made great changes within the field of waste management.
“We are implementing reforms everyday because we are brave. Whilst other politicians feared of making such changes, we believe that that these reforms are crucial if we want to see our country flourish,” Farrugia said.
One third of Malta’s waste is generated from construction and demolition projects.
Farrugia explained that this strategy is of importance because the country is continuously developing work in infrastructure which ultimately generates more construction and demolition waste.
“The government plans on developing and working on other big projects, such as the proposed metro system which will once again generate this type of waste. Therefore, when taking into consideration the significant development that is taking place in our country, this strategy is of crucial importance,” Farrugia said.
“Reforms like the one being published today, moves Malta towards a circular economy. More importantly, it is to be noted that all the reforms announced by the government aren’t just words but are reforms which are being implemented,” Farrugia said.