Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/776046
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 22 JANUARY 2017 12 New plan to spear-fishing News Cocaine bust in Bugibba A loaded firearm and 200gr of cocaine, in cap- sules, were confiscated by the Police following a surveillance operation that had been going on for days. The police's communica- tions office said the Drug Squad had been monitor- ing a 48-year-old man from St Paul's Bay and a 39-year-old man from Swieqi for days and the arrests were carried out on Friday afternoon. The men, both Maltese nation- als, were arrested after investiga- tors searched their car. Further searches at the residence of the 48-year-old man uncovered a loaded firearm. Both men are being held by the police while a magisterial inquiry has been launched. This is the second discovery made by the Drug Squad this week, following the arrest of a 26-year-old port worker from Zurrieq who was found in posses- sion of drugs for trafficking. JAMES DEBONO THE salary and allowances paid to the Executive Chairman of the Planning Authority are still under discussion, a spokesperson for the Planning Authority confirmed. The former CEO of the Planning Authority was appointed Execu- tive Chairman of the Authority, with added responsibilities includ- ing that of chairing the Authority's Executive Council, following the approval of the new planning law. The PA spokesperson confirmed that in the interim, the Executive Chairman is being paid the same salary (and allowances) previously enjoyed by the Chief Executive Officer of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority. The salary and allowances paid to Vince Cassar, whose role is now limited to chairing the Planning Board, are the same as those previ- ously enjoyed by him when he was chairman of the Malta Environ- ment and Planning Authority. As CEO, Johann Buttigieg was receiving an annual salary of €60,000, €10,000 less than his pre- decessor, Ian Stafrace, made in his final year in office. When he was appointed in 2011, Stafrace received a basic salary of €65,000 – which was set to in- crease to €70,000 in the second and third years of his appointment. Buttigieg, who is in charge of the day-to-day running of the PA, is earning three times as much as present PA chairman Vince Cas- sar, who was appointed on a part- time basis with a salary of €18,000. In 2013, his predecessor, Austin Walker, who was initially ap- pointed as executive chairman in 2008, received an annual salary of €93,000. According to the new law, the Executive Chairperson may only be dismissed by a Resolution of the House of Representatives at any time "for a just cause". The law al- so specified that failure to achieve "the targets and objectives set for him by the Minister", amounts to a just cause for dismissal. Before the approval of the new law, the authority's CEO could be dismissed by the authority if he did not achieve the "targets and objec- tives" set for him by the authority. Planning Authority executive chairman's new salary under discussion TECHNICAL ATTACHE` Applications are invited for the position of Technical Attachè (Law and Judicial Co- operation) at the Permanent Representation of Malta to the European Union in Brussels. Applications will be received at the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry for European Affairs and Implementation of the Electoral Manifesto, 31B, Tal-Pilar, Marsamxett Road, Valletta, VLT 1850 by not later than noon of Friday, 3 rd February2017. Further details may be obtained from the Government Gazette of 20th January 2017. Application forms may be downloaded from: http://www.pahro.gov.mt/file.aspx?f=372 Application forms may be downloaded from: JAMES DEBONO MANAGEMENT plans for marine protected areas will address the threat posed by spear-fishing to the Dusky Grouper (Maltese: cerna), a gentle giant of the sea targeted by many artisanal and sport- fishing activities, and a favour- ite fish in Maltese restaurants. But a plan proposed in 2012 proposing concrete measures, including the certification of restaurants, to save the dusky grouper, has been shelved. Instead the Environment and Resources Authority is addressing the conservation of a variety of marine species through the preparation of a "relevant strategic policy" and "the preparation of Marine Protected Areas (MPA) man- agement plans". The MPA plans will be de- veloped following extensive consultation with relevant stakeholders, including the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture (DFA). "Measures related to spear- fishing with aqualungs, the regulation of fishing gear and minimum conservation refer- ence sizes for the groupers, will be addressed in these reg- ulations," the ERA said. The last action plan outlin- ing measures costing €70,000 to protect the grouper was drawn up in 2011 and issued for public consultation in May 2012. The action plan was based on a three-year pro- gramme to set up four marine areas of special interest and study further these potential sites for grouper conservation. One of the measures pro- posed was a certification scheme for restaurants sourced by sustainable fishing practices, to encourage restau- rants to buy unharpooned and correctly-sized specimens. The grouper is already in- cluded in the Flora, Fauna and Natural Habitats Protection Regulations of 2006, which comprise animals and plants of national interest and whose exploitation may be subject to management measures. Until a few years ago, group- ers were in dramatic decline around the Mediterranean. Marine reserves slowed down the decline, and they can now be encountered in reasonably high densities, thanks also to moratoria and the ban on spear fishing for groupers. However, according to the 2011 report the situation in Malta has remained much the same, since no such morato- ria exist and encounters with groupers are still very sporad- ic and rare. The fish can live up to 50 years and can reach a weight of 35kg, living in rocky coastal areas of the Mediterranean Sea. But its unique vulner- ability is a result of the bio- logical characteristics of the slow growing creature, which inverts sex when it reaches 12 years of age. Four new marine protected areas, covering over 18,000 hectares of the Maltese ma- rine environment, have been designated by the Planning Authority. But these sites still lack management plans. The sites include a significant stretch of area along the North East of the Islands and three smaller areas at Mġarr ix-Xini, Dwejra and an area between Għar Lapsi and Filfa. Johann Buttigieg