Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/326223
12 Interview IT hasn't been a great week for Birdlife Malta, nor (one could argue) for Birdlife in general. In the last days we have seen a recommendation by the Ornis Committee – the entity tasked with regulating issues affecting birdlife conservation, including hunting and trapping – to permit the trapping of seven species of finch, five years after this practice was effectively phased out by the end of 2008. This marks a dramatic return to the situation before five years ago, and suggests that the ac- quisitions made on the environmental and conservation front as a result of EU membership may be whittled away right under our noses. Coming so soon after the re-opening of spring hunting following a two-year EU-imposed moratorium, it seems we are sliding backwards to the pre- accession standards of wildlife protec- tion. Birdlife Malta is (as its name sug- gests) opposed to all this; but it is also a member of the Ornis Committee and took part in all the discussions leading to this unexpected development. I meet its director Steve Mickle- wright at BLM's Ta' Xbiex offices with a view to finding out what actually happened at Ornis this week. What is BLM's actual position on trapping, and what did it bring to the table dur- ing what was by all accounts a long and detailed discussion? "The accession treaty to the EU makes it very clear that the phasing out of finch trapping was meant to be done in five years, and was meant to become illegal after that," he begins. "What we've seen over the past few years was a lot of illegal finch trapping, and gov- ernment now seems to be minded to make it legal again through a deroga- tion from the Birds Directive." This directive is the main article of European legislation governing bird conservation, and it explicitly forbids hunting during the breeding season (i.e., spring), and trapping in general. Derogations are special exemptions from EU law, and are governed by conditions laid down in Article 9 of the Birds Directive. Government has already applied a derogation on spring hunting, and now seems dead set on using this precedent to wriggle out of Malta's commitment to end trapping according to the accession treaty. "Of course we oppose that on prin- ciple. The Birds Directive explicitly forbids trapping of birds, therefore we think this is something Malta should not even consider. Having said that, it became very clear to us that the gov- ernment was strongly-minded to re- introduce finch trapping. Even before the Ornis Committee met, there were reports in the newspapers that it was going to decide to allow finch trapping. It was a done deal, a fait accompli. With Ornis you have to remember it is heav- ily weighted in favour of government; there are three government-appointed representatives who outnumber eve- rybody else. Even if FKNK and Birdlife agreed on something, and the govern- ment didn't agree, government would still win. So whatever Ornis decides is really a rubberstamping exercise…" With all that in mind, BLM made its objection to finch trapping clear to Ornis, and voted against it. "But we also put together proposals that were very clearly aimed at minimising the damage that trapping would cause to the wider environment. We asked Ornis to make certain that trapping would not take place on the most im- portant habitats…" Micklewright explains that trapping involves clearing away the surround- ing landscape to make way for clap- nets, and this has a detrimental effect on the surrounding ecosystem. "We tried to limit the damage, even though we were in principle against trapping altogether. We felt this was a mature way of approaching what we felt was a done deal anyway." Yet the situation doesn't seem to be clear-cut. Micklewright is adamant that trapping is illegal under European law; but as all saw in connection with another related issue – spring hunting – this does not necessarily preclude it from taking place. The much-cited European Court ruling of 2009 has been interpreted to permit a limited spring season by means of a deroga- tion. Hunters argue (and Ornis recom- mended) that the same should apply to trapping. But there is also considerable confusion surrounding the precise meaning of the term 'derogation' and how such exemptions are meant to be applied. What exactly is the purpose of a derogation, and what sort of condi- tions must be in place to apply one? "The Birds Directive is very clear on what can and cannot be done and der- ogations can only be applied on very specific circumstances." Micklewright here reads from a print-out of the cel- ebrated Article 9, which lays down the necessary conditions. "These include: health and safety, air safety… damage to crops, so if it's a pest species… protection of other wildlife: so if it's an invasive bird, maybe, that's causing more native birds to disappear… then that would be acceptable. There's also this thing in there called 'judicious use': for me that would be something like research. It certainly isn't hunting and trapping. However, when the European Court of Justice made its ruling about spring hunting, it said – which we feel is in- correct – that 'hunting in autumn' was not a sufficient replacement for hunt- ing in spring. And therefore a limited season could be acceptable. We fun- damentally don't accept that, when 41 species of bird can be shot in unlimited numbers." By Raphael Vassallo maltatoday, SUNDAY, 8 JUNE 2014 ORNIS COMMITTEE Who is There are three government- appointed representatives who outnumber everybody else. So whatever Ornis decides is really a rubberstamping exercise The finch that lays the golden egg