Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/710370
6 MALTA International Airport reduced its greenhouse gas emis- sions by nearly 700 tonnes in 2015, while also reducing CO2 emissions specifically from 2.29kgs per passenger to 1.98kgs, an improvement of 13.5 per cent. This emerges from the air- port's first Sustainability Report that was published following the world-renowned Global Report- ing Initiative's (GRI) standards, and the highlights of which are summarised in video. A number of international or- ganisations across various in- dustries adopt these guidelines to report on their most critical impacts. MIA decided to pioneer these standards in Malta, given its key role in the tourism indus- try and the significant impacts it has on the surrounding environ- ment and communities. "As we strive to become car- bon neutral, it is critical for us to measure our impact. Our first sustainability report gives us the confidence to continue working to remove, reduce or mitigate our negative impacts and improve or build on our positive ones," said CEO Alan Borg. He said the airport would also be entering the Airport Car- bon Accreditation programme at level 1, whereby the airport's carbon footprint would be in- dependently verified in accord- ance with ISO14064 (Green- house Gas Accounting). "Sustainability is now etched in our revamped company strat- egy as one of our core values and we hope to gather more momen- tum on this each year," he added. At a glance, the Sustainabil- ity Report is divided into three main sections, which give an in- depth look at the airport's eco- nomic, environmental, and so- cial impacts. Each section starts by delineating the airport's main goals for 2015 for each of these three aspects and pro- ceeds to detail how they were reached. For the sake of transpar- ency, the report also notes where Malta International Airport can fare better. The report found that the main reason for MIA's reduced emis- sions footprint was due to energy saving efforts such as the installa- tion of LED lighting and signage, a more efficient vehicle f leet and more clean energy generation from the airport's PV system. In welcoming more passengers in 2015 with the same resources, the airport has also improved its efficiency. The report also found that MIA distributed over €58 million into the local economy in 2015 in the form of operating costs, wages, benefits, payment to government, and reinvestments in the local community. maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 3 AUGUST 2016 News EU FUNDS SUPPORT OFFICER Applications are invited for the positions of EU Funds Support Officer in the Ministry for European Affairs and Implementation of the Electoral Manifesto. Applications together with a detailed CV will be received at the Corporate Services Directorate, Ministry for European Affairs and Implementation of the Electoral Manifesto, Tal-Pilar, 31B, Marsamxett Road, Valletta, VLT 1850 or submitted through the Online Government Recruitment Portal on http://recruitment.gov.mt by not later than noon of Friday 12 th August 2016. Further details may be obtained from the Government Gazette of 29 th July 2016. Application forms may be downloaded from: https://opm.gov.mt/en/PAHRO/RESOURCING/Pages/Forms%20and%20Templates/Forms-and- Templates.aspx Some of the positions being advertised through this call for applications may be considered for co-financing by European Union Funds Malta airport reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 700 tonnes in 2015 Swimming pool approved in Natura 2000 site in Bahrija JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Authority on Monday approved a 75 square metre swimming pool in the Bahrija countryside despite clear objections by the Environ- ment and Resources Authority. The approved application aims to rehabilitate an existing farmhouse on the site but it also foresees a swimming pool set on the terraced sides of the Wied il-Marca and Wied il-Bahrija, a designated Area of High Land- scape value and protected as a buffer zone to an Area of Eco- logical Importance which forms part of the Natura 2000 net- work. Buffer zones like the one where the pool area is being proposed are considered as an important component of the scheduling of areas of ecological importance because activities on these sites may still have an indirect impact on the Level 1/Level 2 scheduled areas and the overall integrity of the protected features and/or habitats. The ERA had considered the pool and a proposed pathway as "incompatible with the ru- ral surrounding environment" and the PA's advisory panel on nature protection had also ob- jected to a pool on a site located within the Natura 2000 site. The farmhouse building, parts of which may date back 300 years, has lain aban- doned for some years and sections of it have collapsed. The PA's internal heritage watchdogs approved the rehabilitation of the farmhouse. The case officer recom- mended the approval of the pool by stating that it conforms to the rural development policy approved in 2014, which does not ban swimming pools in Ar- eas of High Landscape Value and in buffer zones to Areas of Ecological Importance. This contrasts with the fate of a proposed underground ag- ricultural reservoir in an adja- cent plot of land, which is being deemed incompatible with the area's designation as a Natura 2000 site. The application, to regularize the pre-1994 agri- cultural store and bee keeping stores, and a reservoir, is being recom- mended for refusal by the case of- ficer. The reason for the objec- tion to the reservoir is because the site is located in a Nat- ura 2000 site. An objection against the farm- house and swimming pool devel- opment was filed by four tenants who insisted that no permits should be issued until their po- sition is regularised. Claiming that they have paid a lease on the land since 1925, the tenants referred to a "verbal agreement" with a member of the Gaffarena family to terminate the lease. But in a letter to the PA they claimed that this agreement was never implemented. The tenants are currently depositing rent to the law courts in view of a court case instituted against Alfaclass Company Limited, a company partly owned by Marco Gaffa- rena. Carmel Attard, who was rep- resented by architect Charles Buhagiar, the Labour MP who chairs the Building Industry Consultative Council, presented the application for the redevel- opment of the old farmhouse and pool. Buhagiar is also the architect of the adjacent applica- tion to regularise the store and construct a reservoir, which has been recommended for refusal.