Dingli trees and ERA

I was extremely perplexed to read Victor Axiak’s reply, in his personal capacity, (April 17) to my article ‘Dingli trees will down ERA’ (April 10), of which authority the professor is the official chairman.

Very strange indeed.

It was surprising to read that he is “equally pained by the loss of a single tree, wherever it may occur, especially in this country of ours where the sprawling concrete is spreading like cancer”.

He must have endured a lot of pain considering that his ERA gave 843 permits to Infrastructure Malta for the ‘removal’ of trees in just one year. The professor can surely comprehend that trees cannot be ‘removed’ just like furniture.

There are many, yes many  who share his pain in seeing such an onslaught on biodiversity. However, these many are not satisfied just saying so. They want to walk the talk.

The professor might have heard, personally or officially, of a handful of environmentalists called Graffitti who stopped the works in Dingli and stopped the destruction of the carob trees, something that his ERA, despite his personal pain, have completely lacked the will to do.

The pain for these environmentalists was unbearable.

If the Dingli road does not require a planning permit, why did ERA go into all the trouble of processing an application and giving its official consent for the destruction of the Dingli trees, which are centenarians? It was not a parliamentary decision to destroy such centenarian trees.

Some of the professor’s jargon such as ‘rubbish’, ‘nonsense’ ‘fake facts’ and ‘misinformation’ are only a stimulus to keep on writing against the butchering, mismanagement, rape and laissez-faire attitude towards our natural environment.

Perhaps ERA, the authority which is paid by public funds to ensure that our natural environment is safeguarded, can one day rise to a professional level in the interest of the people and the country.

The source of such jargon from a professor who undeniably is also the chairman of ERA is a clear indication to every environment stakeholder of the utmost urgent need and obligation to continue speaking on ERA’s impotency in protecting our environment “where the sprawling concrete is spreading like cancer”.

Alfred Baldacchino – Attard

Who is responsible?

Photo: Shutterstock.comPhoto: Shutterstock.com

Traffic accidents seem to be the order of the day in the area where I live, as some drivers tend to forget that the road is used by others too. When an accident occurs (and this might also be the main thoroughfare) there is broken glass, spilt oil and car parts. These are left there until God knows when.

Could someone enlighten me who is to remove the debris after a collision? Surely, not the scavenger, as he is a very rare species in the area.

Emily Barbaro-Sant – Mosta

Local bank charges

Much has been written recently about the various charges that local banks have been introducing.

Recently, while reviewing a statement on a chequing account of our residents’ association, I found out that our bank, as of October 2020, had been applying a charge of €10 per month, which it called a ‘maintenance fee’ because the account was a ‘non-personal’ one.

Surely, a €120/year charge just for having a chequing account for a small, five-owner condominium is exorbitant, especially in a financial environment where the banks practically give you no interest on any money deposited with them, while loaning it out at commercial rates.

It is no wonder that people are disillusioned and disappointed with banks.

Joseph Galea – Sliema

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