Waste management has become one of Malta’s biggest challenges ranging from municipal waste to that generated by the construction industry. Whilst this is a global issue, Malta’s population density, its geographical limitation and lack of long-term planning have turned this issue into a time-bomb.

According to the latest data published by the National Statistics Office in 2019 municipal waste generation (from households) increased by 7.3 per cent over the previous year to a total of 349,576 tonnes. Despite the fact that 2019 was the first full year in which households were obliged by law to separate waste and be more considerate, the share of the municipal waste which was landfilled at Maghtab – meaning not recycled – increased by 1.7% over 2018 and rose to 91.1% of the total. The increase, though marginal, is a kick in the teeth to the efforts to reduce the waste being dumped at the landfill. This means that in 2019 320,631 tonnes of municipal waste were disposed of at the landfill.

Clearly, there is still a long way to go. A major concern on the issue of domestic waste separation is enforcement. Unfortunately, some areas of the Maltese Islands have become notoriously famous for the lack of discipline in this regard. Despite the media campaign to ‘sort it out’, there is still a significant chunk of the population which flouts the law. These breaches range from not respecting waste collection schedules, taking out the wrong bag, or not separating waste at all. Different waste collection schedules across localities do not help either as there is no sense of uniformity across the country.

When the domestic waste separation scheme had been launched in October 2018 there had been the suggestion to use bar-coded waste bags bearing the household address. This would have enabled enforcers to trace the culprits committing the aforementioned offences, be it Maltese residents, foreigners or tourists. In the case of the latter, landlords would have had the option to block some money as guarantee in case a fine would be issued after the tourist’s departure. For some reason however, the government had shot down such proposal. Nearly two years down the line, evidence on the ground suggests this decision was a mistake as some localities are struggling to cope with the offences being committed. As things stand you either catch them red-handed or nothing. This is resulting in waste being left to rot on the streets for days, public health hazards and areas turning into eyesores.

The situation also leaves much to be desired in public places, during mass events and in areas popular for camping or in popular beach spots housing boathouses. For some reason, no provisions are being taken to cater for waste separation. Instead, we are still going about the situation as we used to do decades ago which is by placing skips which receive all forms of unseparated waste.

Moreover, certain decisions such as the postponement by more than a year of the Beverage Container Refund Scheme left a bitter taste. Under this scheme, empty plastic bottles could be disposed of in special machines for 10c each. An estimated 350 machines were promised but so far this has not yet materialised as the scheme was postponed. Meanwhile, plastic containers continue to accumulate in our environment.

Waste management is a ticking time bomb more than ever.

The situation calls for changing approach and using the stick. It is pointless investing millions in new equipment and waste management facilities only for the public to keep flouting the rules. Otherwise, the government would only be cheating itself and the thousands of environmentally-conscious residents who are doing their part by separating their domestic waste. Meanwhile, the Magħtab landfill is going higher by the minute.