Nadia and Maria, two juvenile turtles, were released back into the wild on Tuesday after almost two months of treatment at the Wildlife Rehab Centre project.

Operated by Nature Trust Malta (NTM), with the financial support of the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), the Wildlife Rehab Centre Project rehabilitates injured wildlife. 

Nadia was rescued on August 4 when she was found floating on the surface with a hook in its mouth, while Maria was rescued on August 20 after ingesting lots of plastics. She also had several old scars from past injuries. 

NTM president CEO Vince Attard once again appealed to the public to keep beaches clean and plastic-free. 

He said: “plastic pollution is on the increase and is badly effecting us and marine life. Disposing of waste in the appropriate bins even on land is of utmost importance and crucial to reduce plastic waste at sea.”

ERA CEO Kevin Mercieca said the authority is developing policies intended to reduce as much plastic waste as possible through updated legislation – namely the ban on the importation and sale of single-use plastics on the local market and a number of other measures covered under the Single Use Plastic Strategy for Malta 2020-2030.  

“This also goes hand in hand with other waste-related initiatives intended to reduce waste in general, such as the mandatory waste separation regulations introduced in April.  All these policy initiatives help reduce the amounts of waste plastic ending up in the sea putting the life of marine biodiversity at risk”. 

Fines for incorrect waste separation come into force on October 15.