A new set of regulations relating to the protection of trees and woodland areas was announced in a press conference on Wednesday by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) and the Ministry for the Environment.
The new regulations follow on what was already in place as per regulations implemented in 2001 and 2011, and they provide additional protection to more species of trees; stipulate that interventions on trees must be conducted by licensed tree specialists; add in additional criteria and processing fees for environmental permits; and also add administrative fines for infringements with a penalty scale that varies according to the species and the gravity of the offence.
The new regulations almost double the amount of species under protection and make stipulations to protect all trees in Outside Development Zones, green areas and urban public open spaces, the latter being the biggest change from past regulations. Furthermore, trees which are over 50 years old will also be protected, as will 60 wooded areas across Malta and Gozo.
Special protection and preference is given to indigenous trees, whilst certain stipulations are made on the planting of invasive and alien species. This being said however, the Ficus and the Eucalyptustrees, which are both alien, are protected as long as they are in urban public open spaces.
The CEO of the ERA, Louise Portelli, made sure to specify that the actual meaning of protection is not that nothing can be done to these trees; but that a relationship must be built between the authorities and all those directly in contact with trees so they can approach them in a proper manner to protect them. Portelli also spoke of the ERA's commitment to raising more awareness to the protection of trees.
Minister for the Environment, Sustainable Development and Climate Change Jose Herrera also addressed the press conferences saying that he was very happy with the new regulations and that it provided for the protection of over 90 species of trees, whilst using bigger fines as more of a deterrent to carrying out illegalities on trees.
Herrera also called certain criticism of his ministry as either "hearsay" or based on "superficial research". He said the criticism that his ministry was doing nothing for the presence of trees on the island does not hold water, before saying that 2018 was going to be a record year with a total of 12,000 trees planted. Furthermore, he added that criticism on how the environment was being treated in infrastructural projects was also incorrect and that there was strong coordination between himself and Minister for Transport Ian Borg to make sure that if trees do have to be removed, they are either transplanted or replaced with many more than there previously were.
from The Malta Independent https://ift.tt/2KigE95
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