The Environmental and Resources Authority (ERA) concluded that a competition for gun dogs would cause “minimal” impacts to the area used for the activity, a spokesperson for the agency has confirmed. 

The event, which made provision for the shooting of 180 quail, took place on Saturday at a Natura 2000 site in l-Aħrax, Mellieħa - three days after the close of hunting season. 

It was granted a permit as regulators considered the competition a 'dog training event', and not a hunting event, organisers told Times of Malta on the weekend.

In a statement, ERA confirmed that an assessment of the permit application for the event had identified “no significant impacts to the area's environment”. 

Admitting that the site is designated a “protected area” for the habitats of certain species, the agency stressed that the activity was “a one-off, short-duration training session, and is not considered to cause any significant impacts or risks”.  

Hunting lobby Federation for Hunting & Conservation confirmed on Saturday that in addition to the 36 hunters taking part, over 100 spectators attended the event. 

"Conscious that such activities can attract more people than the 20 indicated by the applicants, the authority assessed the impact of the event... and the impacts identified were still deemed to be minimal," ERA said.  

Environmental NGO Birdlife Malta told Times of Malta that ERA "should have seen if there was an alternative [site]", and that the FKNK event could have taken place at “any other site”. 

The area in Mellieħa is currently in a state of regeneration, they added, noting that the event had the potential to disturb the hibernation cycles of protected species including hedgehogs and reptiles.  

While the European Commission issues guidance for the permitting of plans or projects on Natura 2000 sites, each member state regulates those sites within their own territory.  

In Malta, this is governed by ERA. 

An EC graphic guiding the permitting of plans and projects on Natura 200 sites.

A guidance document published by the European Commission notes that while a permit for a plan or project may be approved if unlikely to have a “significant effect” on a Natura 2000 site, if an alternative solution exists then permission should not be granted.  

According to the commission's website, Natura 2000 is a network of protected sites across Europe identified as “core breeding and resting sites for rare and threatened species and some rare natural habitat types".