Our climate challenge and more
Higher temperatures, drought, storms and sea level rise are few of the symptoms of a changing climate.
Malta has not been spared of global events, hence why we need to act locally on global matters. While Malta is not the main culprit in terms of emissions causing global warming, we too have an obligation to do our part.
Last week I joined colleagues from the Nationalist Party during a conference on climate change which has kicked-off a process of policy development in the field. Through this process we are listening to the wider spectrum of stakeholders, from young activists to farmers who are seeing climate action not only as vital and as a responsibility, but also as the only way forward.
We have also obligations in this regard. The EU through the framework of the European Green Deal is proposing a series of measures and legal obligations to fight climate change. One specific measure at the heart of the Green Deal is to boost investment in alternative energy and to reach climate neutrality by 2050. However, this should not be used as an excuse to develop in ODZ and squeeze farmers out of the land they have been working for decades. Recent stories reported in the media on proposals made to build solar farms on fertile land in Mġarr and Burmarrad are hence no real solution. Government must be very clear about the matter. Emphasis needs to be made to use private and public buildings in the development zones. We want to turn climate change into an economic opportunity but in full respect to the environment.
The same applies for transport and ferries. Investment needs to be made in clean innovative technology not in 30-year-old ships such as in the case of the Nikolaus, currently rented at 15,000 euro a day. As proposed by the Gozo Business Chamber, cleaner options are available on the market. The PN is leading on this. We will invest in two brand new ships to complement the existing Gozo Channel fleet, including a goods transport service.
We should also look at other good practices such as the EU funded E-Ferry project which has tested the use of fully electric ferries in Danish islands allowing vessels to travel 38km before the need to be recharged. To put things into perspective, the distance between Malta and Gozo is approximately 5km.
In the last days, the EU launched EU missions, a new way to bring concrete solutions to some of our greatest challenges. They have ambitious goals and will deliver concrete results by 2030. Two of these missions are directly linked to climate change. The first is adaptation to Climate Change to make European communities climate-resilient by 2030 while a second is to have 100 ClimateNeutral and Smart Cities by 2030. Malta must be ambitious in this regard and must aim to have Valletta and Victoria to be on the forefront of innovation and stand as landmarks in Europe not just for their cultural and historical heritage but also for their excellence in the green transition. We can do this by attracting research and innovation to Malta. We need to give ourselves the right reputation to attract leaders of the climate change era. We need to start by leading the way. Let’s hit the international headlines for the right reasons rather than negative reputational messages linked to impunity and government inaction to address corruption and threats to journalists/democracy.
We do not want fake green projects like the corrupt power station coordinated by disgraced minister Konrad Mizzi under Muscat’s premiership but projects which show our true values, capabilities and resilience. Neither do we want fake targets without meaningful solutions such as government’s propaganda to make Gozo climate-neutral before 2050. Let’s show that we are truly changing. Climate should not be a green washing exercise. After dragging its feet to declare a climate emergency, government has in reality lowered the guard and its ambitions on climate action as shown through various policies from uprooting trees to incompetence shown in waste management.
There is a long way to go and all of us need to do our part. At PN we have started to do our part too. We are getting ISO certified for our environmental credentials. We set up a new branch – PN greens – to lobby internally and raise more awareness on sustainable policies. We are crowd sourcing solutions. We are also reaching out to stakeholders. If you believe climate change is an urgent matter, join us and let’s tackle it together. If you believe climate change is an opportunity for Malta’s economy, talk to us. We are eager for solutions. We have the right resources to develop and evaluate ideas.