Climate change is an unequivocal reality – and it is created by anthropogenic effects. It is the result of our collective behaviour, whether through the energy we consume to heat and cool our buildings, the single-occupancy use of our car, the food we choose to eat and the waste we generate.
We are seeing more intense and aggressive storms and precipitation events in some areas and time periods, while other geographical areas suffer from lower amounts of precipitation, drought and desertification. Melting glaciers are leading to sea-level rise that puts small Pacific island states at risk of extinction, changing sea currents, migration of invasive alien species, destruction of life-giving coral reefs and general loss of biodiversity.
This may all sound gloomy – but paradoxically the good news is that human activity is causing climate change, and this means that changes in human activity can also reverse the current trends.
It is this very realisation that underpins the basis of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change that for the first time brought all nations together in a common effort on climate change. Malta ratified the Paris Agreement at an early stage, signifying its intent to subscribe to international efforts required to address climate change.
The pandemic crisis of the recent months has left a marked negative impact on societies across the world.
The forced social distancing and activity slowdown has had undesired economic consequences that would have been much worse had the government not intervened to support and bolster the affected sectors. Decisive action is now needed to ensure we get on the road to recovery fastest.
At a local level the government has launched an ad hoc €1.8 billion mini-budget to support struggling businesses and preserve employment. At an EU level, the Recovery Plan has also been launched with the intention of ensuring that the EU and its member states remain resilient and competitive, driving for sustainable growth in full respect of the agreed environmental and climate change targets, particularly carbon neutrality by 2050.
As Malta’s minister responsible for the environment and also climate change I cannot but endorse the call being made across the EU to prioritise environmental considerations in our decisions and to ensure that in our efforts to restructure our economy back into a vibrant and resilient one we must not lock ourselves into old models of behaviour.
The post-coronavirus economic recovery must be consistent with the European Green Deal and its targets.
The pandemic has shown us very clearly the direct positive environmental impact of less cars on the road. Now that we are adapting to a new post-pandemic normality, we need more than ever to reflect on what kind of ‘normality’ we want to return to. Across the EU, decarbonisation should become a primary agenda for sustainable economic development that ensures the growth of jobs that are greener and more resilient to climate considerations.
The post-coronavirus economic recovery must be consistent with the European Green Deal and its targets- Aaron Farrugia
Last October, the Maltese parliament unanimously approved a resolution declaring a climate emergency and highlighting our joint resolve to decisively act to ensure that climate action is meaningfully undertaken across the various sectors of the Maltese economy.
Indeed Malta’s readiness to act was already manifested in 2015 with the enactment of the Climate Action Act that recognised the change in the earth’s climate as a common concern of humankind while making it the duty of every person together with the government to protect the climate.
Admittedly the road ahead will not be easy or straightforward. On a per capita basis Malta is already the lowest emitter in the EU. In the last few years Malta’s economic base has been transformed and transitioned from one reliant on a large, energy-intensive manufacturing base to a service-oriented economy where value added is generated by low energy intensive service activities. Likewise, we have ditched heavy fuel oil energy generation to one that is based on LNG, and hence generates much less greenhouse gases emissions. Malta has also diversified its energy sources through the interconnector with Sicily.
These structural changes have already brought about considerable reductions in Malta’s greenhouse gas emissions. On the other hand, the resident population has grown, tourism volumes have increased, urbanisation has intensified, and the economy has not sufficiently decoupled itself from emissions generated. At this juncture however, there is further potential for additional significant source-based reductions simply because, unlike some other EU countries, we have already undertaken the major shifts.
Resource efficiency must be increased as this ultimately means less power generation and hence less emissions.
It is in this context that we have recently launched unprecedented investments in waste management facilities aimed at maximising our efforts towards a circular economy. By next month the licensing agreement for the beverage containers refund scheme should also be in place and this will see up to 90 per cent of plastic and other containers collected for recycling.
Shifting to electric vehicles or using public modes of transport will also have positive impacts, as will the use of more efficient heating and cooling systems and improved waste management. In the same vein we are pushing forward our agenda for carbon efficient buildings even from a planning perspective.
In the meantime, my ministry is currently preparing the Low Carbon Development Strategy, which will define the pathway Malta has to follow to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. In this context, and consequential to the climate emergency motion adopted in October 2019, I will shortly be tabling legislative amendments to strengthen the climate change governance framework. We will be pressing further towards sustainable mobility, increasing green open spaces and afforestation, and improving the energy performance of buildings.
We have ahead of us some difficult choices and decisions, but our focus will be to ensure that measures taken are just ‒ on an environmental, economic and social level. Climate neutrality is not really a choice. Staying on our current paths will mean increasingly adverse natural events and calamities for ourselves and our children. The government cannot act on its own to decarbonise Malta’s economy. I invite private and civil society sectors to join this call to change the status quo.
Aaron Farrugia is Minister for Climate Change, the Environment and Planning.