Several truckloads of debris have been dumped at the idyllic Miżieb woodland as part of a “tree-planting project” being run by hunters. 

Two once-green areas, roughly the size of a football pitch each, have been levelled with what appears to be demolition debris and quarry waste. 

The dumping in Miżieb is being done as part of a project organised by the hunting fraternity FKNK and national parks agency Ambjent Malta. 

However, sources at the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) have raised concerns that rules meant to protect natural habitats appear to have been violated. 

“This isn’t the way you run a project to plant trees – by burying large areas of land with rubble,” a senior ERA source said. 

FKNK has not replied to questions sent about the debris. 

The hunting federation in Malta was given management control of the Miżieb and Aħrax woodlands for three years in 2020 against an annual token payment of €200 for each site. 

The deal had outraged environmentalists and civil society groups who said the public would be denied access to the green areas for more than five months of the year, when hunting seasons are open. 

Some of the debris that has been dumped in the area.

The FKNK, on the other hand, defended the deal saying it merely formalised a previous informal arrangement that had already been in place for decades. 

The deal is the subject of a legal battle between a coalition of environmental NGOs and the government. 

The woodland was devastated by a fire in 2019 with an estimated 4,600 trees destroyed and more than 180,000 square meters of land left scorched. 

Ambjent Malta: we are providing technical assistance 

Replying to questions on Tuesday about the debris in Miżieb, parks agency Ambjent Malta said the tree-planting project was meant to rehabilitate the area, nearly three years after the blaze.

An agency spokesperson said Ambjent Malta and officials from the Environment and Resources Authority had carried out an assessment of the area together with the FKNK.

A plan was then developed to restore the damaged areas.

The spokesperson said the plan includes the removal of invasive and non-native species, placement of soil and planting of indigenous trees and shrubs. 

“Ambjent Malta are providing technical assistance to FKNK and also assisting in the implementation of the works,” the spokesperson said.

She added that “soil” had been transported to the area for what was described as “habitat restoration through the planting of native trees and shrubs”.

The agency confirmed that an assessment had been carried out by Ambjent Malta and the ERA before works began.

ERA: No permit needed 

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the ERA  said the site is not a Natura 2000 site and so it did not require an ERA permit for the works involved.

The spokesperson said the ERA is monitoring the works to ensure that any spillover on green areas are restored in an “environmentally sensitive manner”.

He added that ERA officials will also be checking to ensure “low-lying rubble walls are constructed in a manner that does not prejudice the integrity of the trees”.