Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1365814
WEDNESDAY • 28 APRIL 2021 NEWS 7 NEWS CONTACT Adriana Farrugia or Erika Arrigo on 21382741 for sponsorship opportunities SCAN THIS CODE USING A QR SCANNER APP TO WATCH THE LATEST EPISODE ON YOUR SMARTPHONE JAMES DEBONO THE government intends to introduce fines and pris- on terms against anyone found guilty of discharging of chemicals and other substances as unlawful activi- ties including tipping, which result in the degradation of the quality of Malta's main fresh water resource; ground water. Ground water accounts for 40% of Malta's drinking water supply and for most of the water used for irriga- tion of crops. But over the past decades the quality of Malta's ground water has deteriorated partly as a result of the release of nitrates from animal husbandry farms. The legislation applies both to direct and indirect con- tamination of the aquifer with chemicals or the concen- tration of any substance surpassing natural levels as well as to activities increasing the heat of underground water. According to the Environment and Resources Au- thority in a scenario where water resources are very scarce due to the semi-arid climatic conditions of the islands, "the need to safeguard the quality of freshwater sustained in limestone aquifers gains significant impor- tance". Moreover the quality of Malta's groundwater needs to be safeguarded by preventing pollution from human activities. "For this purpose, regulations are being proposed to prohibit further direct discharges to groundwater bod- ies and strengthen regulation of indirect discharges". The new regulations will be in line with Malta's obli- gations under the EU's Water Framework Directive and the Water Policy Framework Regulations. According to the proposed legal notice any person who undertakes any activity which results in a "direct discharge" of pollutants to groundwater shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or a fine not exceeding €1,000. Anyone found guilty of the indirect discharge to groundwater of pollutants through "any activity of dis- posal or tipping for the purpose of disposal" shall be lia- ble to 3 months of imprisonment or a €750 fine. When these illegal acts occur within a groundwater safeguard zone, the perpetrator will be liable to an im- prisonment term of not less than six months and not exceeding twelve months or to a fine of not less than five €5,000 and not exceeding €10,000. The Court may also order the decommissioning and, or sealing of any structure or infrastructure located above or under the ground used in carrying out the ac- tivity to be undertaken at the offender's expense, and may further order the confiscation of any equipment used in the carrying out of said activity. The proposed legal notice covers both the discharge of pollutants at ground surface level or at any point "which is vertically deeper than half the distance between the ground surface and the nearest water table at that point". But any authorized activity directed at the artificial re- charge or augmentation of bodies of groundwater is not to be considered an offence. The public is being invited to send its feedback on the proposed legislation by 24 May. Hefty fines contemplated against pollution of ground water