According to statistics published by Eurostat, Malta had the largest year-on-year greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions increase, when comparing the first quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024, when compared to all European Union countries

This is something we, as a country, should be ashamed of, and is something that must be brought under control.

There are many things which contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, including energy generation, and even transport.

The government did well to change the kind of resource used to generate electricity in the country. Gas is less harmful in terms of emissions than heavy fuel oil. But the government needs to push to the next step. Malta is not a large country, yet Eurostat statistics show Malta's share of renewables in final energy consumption was at 13.4%, the second lowest proportion in the EU in 2022. First of all, Malta has flat roofs and plenty of sunshine. More incentives for people to construct solar panels should be introduced. In addition to that, the government is said to be exploring the idea of offshore floating renewable energy infrastructure.

It should press ahead with this initiative. While the gas used for the power station produces less emissions, renewable energy would be far better. One also does question why Enemalta opted to get an emergency power plant that uses diesel, which is clearly not an environmentally friendly move. This plant will only be used in emergency situations until the second interconnector is built, it said, but still.

In addition, the public need incentives to ensure people don't waste electricity while at home or at work. The less we use, the better it is for the environment.

As for vehicle emissions, well that's a whole other story. The government has failed, miserably, at bringing the issue of private care use under control. Its main plan, so it seems, has been to build flyovers and widen roads. Warnings were made that this would only be a temporary solution, and look where we are now... still facing traffic problems. If the country is to reduce traffic on the roads, then the government needs to come up with an actual, real plan that would reduce the number of private vehicles being used. It should sit down with different entities and come up with such a strategy.

At the same time, the public at large also needs to be open to the idea of using their private vehicle less. Far too many think others should change their local travelling habits but are not willing to make any changes themselves. In order to bring about real, tangible change, then we all will need to make sacrifices.