A question of balance

The environment has been an issue that has slowly but gradually moved up the priority list of the Maltese. Issues such as the rehabilitation of the Magħtab landfill, the waste recycling plant in Sant'Antnin, building development in various areas in Malta and Gozo and, last but certainly not least, hunting, have served to heighten attention on this matter. Besides, attention is being given all over the world to climate change. What is also important to note is that the word environment means different things to different people.

Thus, what is an environmental priority to one population segment is not necessarily a priority to another segment. For some, the environment is nothing more than the street they live in, the way it has been tarmacked or the number of potholes it may or may not have. For others, it is their locality and the building development that is taking place there, together with the dust and noise pollution that this creates. For others, it would still mean the countryside and the sea, that is the areas where they seek to spend their leisure time and how these areas are being encroached by development.

There are those who look at the environment from the perspective of heritage. There are others for whom the priority is the conservation of animals, flora and fauna. There are those who adopt a holistic approach to the environment and consider all these features.

So, the perspectives can be very diverse and maybe at times even conflicting. Another important consideration to make about the environment is that attitudes and behaviour do not always correspond with each other. Most people will claim that environment protection is an important aspect of their lives, but their behaviour is so often harmful to the environment. The NIMBY syndrome is evident in the environmental issue.

The fact that environmental perspectives may be conflicting immediately brings to the forefront the need for balance. And this is where the issue starts becoming economic in nature. Looking at the wider picture, we need to remind ourselves that we are a group of islands of just over 300 square kilometres with a population of just over 400,000 and a tourist population of 1.3 million. The average stay per tourist is around seven days. I do not think there are many other countries in the world that welcome a tourist population that is over three times the size of their resident population. Add to this the size of the island, and we all agree that in terms of population density we must be over the limit. Thus, the requirements of the people on their own are already a strain on our environment.

While looking at the wider picture, we then need to remind ourselves that because we are an island, we require certain infrastructure, that a city in mainland Europe would not require. For example, a city of 500,000 people on the mainland would not need to have its electricity generation plant, to dispose of its waste within its area, to have an international airport and would not need a number of other amenities located within its boundaries that we have in Malta. The Maltese economy needs such amenities for it to thrive. This is bound to put a further strain on the environment.

Then we need to remind ourselves that we need to create jobs for our labour force within our country. Although we can go abroad to work in other EU countries (thanks to our EU membership and not thanks to anyone or anything else), it is not the same as someone living for example in Luxembourg who goes to work in Germany. We would need to catch a plane whereas the Luxembourg resident would drive to his place of work. This means that we would need to have located in Malta a diverse range of economic activities to ensure there are jobs for everyone and that we do not depend solely on one type of activity. The strain on our environment is getting stronger.

All this points to one direction - it is paramount for our country to have an appropriate policy that strikes a balance between our economic and demographic requirements on the one hand and the environmental requirements on the other hand. When we speak of sustainability, we cannot just speak of environmental sustainability but, we also have to speak of economic, demographic and social sustainability. Maybe today we speak of environmental sustainability because we seem to have addressed a number of so-called national issues such as the economy (fiscal deficit, employment, etc), health and education.

This is why the balance between environmental requirements and other requirements in the country, needs to occupy the attention of those in the highest authority. What could represent such a balance? We certainly need to introduce the "polluter pays principle", be it in transport, in construction, or other areas. We certainly need an educational campaign in favour of alternative sources of energy and in favour of the need to reduce our energy consumption.

We certainly need to implement projects that generate energy from renewable sources. We certainly require investment in the development of recreational areas that add value to our countryside, the sea around us and our heritage. These are all policies where economics plays a significant role.

Striking such a balance will certainly prove to be difficult if people adopt a fundamentalist approach to the issue. The ability to find a compromise and to seek the common good is crucial.

However, when we remember that up to five years ago very few thought that the rehabilitation of the Magħtab landfill was possible and we now know that this is becoming a reality, then striking the balance should also be possible; but we should not take it for granted.