The Energy Ministry recently launched a ‘Green Paper’ for the regularisation of groundwater extraction, a much-needed reform at a time where the pressure of increased economic activity and a drier climate risk seriously depleting a key resource.
Groundwater makes for 36% of Malta’s public water supply, with the rest produced by desalination plants. One of the main aims of the regularisation is to reduce the agricultural sector’s dependence on the water table, with the government offering treated wastewater and systems to harvest rainwater as an alternative.
Those who extract groundwater will require a licence, which will be subject to restrictions based on the quality of the groundwater and the “impact of climate change”. Farmers will be allowed a quota and will need to pay extra once they exceed the quota.
Interestingly, much of the Green Paper focuses on the use of water in agriculture, however there is little mention of regulating groundwater extraction by the construction industry.
Over the span of three years, from 2019 until the end of 2021, 237 million litres of groundwater were extracted to make cement.
These figures, published in 2022, are most likely lower than the actual amount of groundwater extracted, because not all boreholes are registered, while a few batching plants which have been mysteriously allowed to operate illegally are just another open secret.
Even worse, the industry didn’t pay a single cent for the extraction of these vast volumes of water.
In this regard, it is also worth noting how the ministry sets out an ambitious target to reduce groundwater extraction by 35%, going on to 50%.
There is no such mention of curbing commercial use, which includes construction, water bottling, cleaning activities and landscaping.
Moreover, the Green Paper quotes a figure of 245 boreholes registered for commercial use, although Minister Miriam Dalli had stated in a reply to a PQ last year that there are only 20 metered boreholes.
The new law – up for consultation until mid-January – is a much-needed step in the right direction. The EU had warned Malta way back in 2010 that it should charge for groundwater extraction, since the Water Framework Directive had made water pricing policies mandatory by the end of that year. The Green Paper brings the issue back on the agenda, a sign that the situation is dire.
A report drawn up by the European Environment Agency in 2018 had listed Malta, Cyprus, and Spain as countries where groundwater was drying up fast. Besides the depletion, there are issues with groundwater quality, as demonstrated by a map published within the Green Paper. In this regard, it feels as if the mess was allowed to happen, and now the government has been forced into action.
Regulating water extraction is a principled approach not just to solving a problem but should also become policy in terms of safeguarding other resources, including land and air. Pressures on the water table cannot be said to be increasing because of agricultural activities, which are dwindling, according to statistics published by the NSO.
On the other hand, increased construction activity has resulted in increased take-up of this precious resource, and it remains to be seen how – or if – the government intends to alleviate this pressure. While the aim to reduce agriculture’s dependence on the groundwater is laudable, there is no reason why a polluting industry such as construction should not be heavily taxed for the resources it has taken for free for years, turning them into hefty profits.
Ultimately, laws are only as solid as the authorities administering them.