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maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 15 JUNE 2016 17 Events Life saving Buskett project: Enhancing our native woodland habitats WHEN we think of Buskett, many of us think of the con- cretised area 'under the tent' which spans out to grassy patches and tree lined paths. However, Buskett is actually a vast area of land in the west of Malta that spans the local councils of Rabat, Dingli and Siggiewi and forms part of the extensive valley system of Wied il-Kbir, with a discharge point at Marsa Creek. In August 2014, the PARKS Department embarked on the Life Saving Buskett project, a project part financed by the European Union Life+ pro- gramme, which aims to extend the existing woodland cover- age by almost 38,000m2 (that is the size of about five football pitches) by planting 3,300 na- tive trees. Among the tree species being planted along the watercourse are the white poplar (Populus alba), hoary elm (Ulmus ca- nescens), narrow-leafed ash (Fraxinus angustifolia), white willow (Salix alba) and Medi- terranean willow (Salix pedi- cellata) since these are riparian trees typical of water streams; while the carob (Ceratonia sili- qua), olive (Olea europaea), bay laurel (Laurus nobilis), lentisk (Pistacia lentiscus), Mediter- ranean buckthorn (Rhamnus alaternus), aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis) and the holm oak (Quercus ilex) trees will be planted on the sides of the val- ley since these are more resist- ant to dry conditions. Apart from helping to extend the protected native woodland habitats coverage of Buskett, these trees will contribute to the reduction of soil erosion in the area. Of interest is the fact that Buskett is the only place in Malta where the narrow-leafed ash grows naturally. However, this species of tree, along with the other trees which will be planted, are being grown at the PARK nursery at Ta' Qali from seeds or cuttings strictly deriv- ing from local stocks in order to conserve the local gene pool. The 3,300 trees which are be- ing planted will have the dis- tinction of forming part of a wider initiative undertaken by ENO - Environment Online, a global virtual school and net- work for sustainable develop- ment, which at the UN RIO+20 Summit committed to planting 100 million trees worldwide by 2017. ENO - Environment Online is present in more than 150 countries through a virtual network of educators and in Malta is working in coopera- tion with LEAF Malta. Unfortunately, not everyone in Malta as yet understands the significance and value of plant- ing these trees and of regener- ating our woodland habitats. Soon after the first trees were planted as part of this project, over 200 of them were van- dalised or stolen. While con- demning such acts, the PARKS Department will continue to strive to meet the targets set, while also doing its utmost to inform and educate the general public on the benefits of en- hancing and maintaining our native woodland areas. Life Saving Buskett is a pro- ject part financed by the Euro- pean Union Life+ programme created by the PARKS Depart- ment within the Ministry for Sustainable Development, the Environment and Climate Change. It was launched in August 2014 and will run until May 2018. The woodland 's origins date back to the 16th century, when the valley slopes of Wied il- Buskett and Wied il-Luq were delineated and planted with fruit trees (mostly citrus trees) following the construction of Verdala Palace. Certain wild patches, which f lourished with Holm oaks among others, were retained, eventually boosted by the British who planted most of the pine trees existing to- day, which make up the largest extent of mature tree cover in the area. Thus, Malta's largest semi-natural woodland was created. Although this means that the majority of the trees that today grow in the Buskett area were planted by man, there are a few trees that are the remnants of previous forests that once ex- isted in Malta, such as the rare and imposing evergreen or holm oak (Quercus ilex: Mal- tese: Balluta). w w w.lifesavingbuskett.org. mt Quaterno+ €290,000 jackpot finds owner THE 14th May €290,000 Quater- no+ jackpot has finally found its owner, Maltco Lotteries has an- nounced. Maltco Lotteries went on to thank the media, Maltco agents, and the public, who shared the non-claim announce- ment on social media, leading the owner of the winning ticket to go to the Maltco Lotteries head of- fice and claim his prize. The winner who won the Qua- terno+ Jackpot on the 14th of May, had up till the 13th of July 2016 to show up and claim his prize before his ticket would ex- pire, when the money would have been redirected to the govern- ment's Good Causes Fund. Maltco Lotteries advises all players to always check that the printed numbers are correct whilst still in the Maltco point of sale, keep the tickets safe, and check if they are amongst the winners shortly after the draws. Prizes can only be claimed against the original ticket with a readable barcode, and within 60 days of the respective draw. For further information email info@maltco.net, visit the Malt- co website www.maltco.com or call 2388 3000. Social Impact Awards launched in Malta THE Gasan Foundation together with Inspirasia Foundation are launching a new initiative for social change in Malta through the Social Impact awards. The awards will create a platform for new philanthropic ideas and an opportunity to receive financial and non-financial support. The awards will recognize non-profit organisations, social enterprises and individuals who submit in- novative, social projects that can have a sustainable positive impact and scalable change for Malta. The primary aim behind these awards is to bring together the private and non-profit sectors and to offer opportunities for NGOs and individuals to receive both financial and non-financial support to develop and materi- alise a project that could have a positive social impact on Malta. Together the two foundations and other businesses have al- ready amassed over €50,000 to donate as grants to the best and most effective submissions. "The idea behind these awards is to inspire the business com- munity and corporate founda- tions to give more and give well," founder of Inspirasia Foundation Mark Weingard said. "With these awards we hope to bring the non-profit sector clos- er to philanthropists and busi- nesses in order to have more so- cial impact in Malta. It is about time we all start taking our im- pact as seriously as our profits, with efficiency and profession- alism at our core," the chairman of the Gasan Foundation, Joseph Gasan said. Following an intensive selec- tion process once all applications have been submitted, the final- ists will have a chance to pitch their projects in front of a panel of judges made up of business leaders and philanthropists, for a chance to win at an event which will take place in October, 2016. Applications and further de- tails can be downloaded from the Facebook page https://www. f a c e b o o k . c o m /s o c i a l i m p a c t a - wardsmalta or contact Inspirasia assistant director on louisa@in- spirasia.org. The deadline for submissions of expression of interest is 11th July, 2016. YOUR FIRST CLICK OF THE DAY www.maltatoday.com.mt Old, gnarled and beautiful – trees provide much needed shade from the hot summer sun at Buskett