Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/920426
maltatoday SUNDAY 31 DECEMBER 2017 News MARIA PACE A proposed waste collection scheme at night in Valletta could turn out to be a nightmare for café owners and restaurateurs. Earlier this month, a public con- sultation was launched on pro- posed changes to the Litter Act to change collection hours for waste, as Valletta prepares to take up the mantle of European Capital of Cul- ture in 2018. Under the proposed changes, waste will be collected between midnight and 3am, and between 3pm and 5pm every day, including Sundays and public holidays. But one restaurateur, who pre- ferred to stay anonymous, told MaltaToday the proposed plan had various logistical problems. According to this complainant, the allocated times for waste col- lection make no sense for both business owners and residents. "It's totally ludicrous," she said. "Residents won't be home between 3pm and 5pm… and they won't be happy being woken up by waste collections happening between midnight and 3am." One Valletta resident, Reuben Grima, agrees. "This proposal is a non-starter for residents like my- self," he said in a comment posted on MaltaToday's comment-board. "We cannot be at home between 3pm and 5 pm, because we are at work, and we would rather not wait up till midnight to take out the rubbish." The restaurateur adds that waste collection cannot be seen as an isolated problem in a city like Valletta. "Although Valletta is being re- formed in the run up to Valletta 18, there are still various major issues which aren't being tackled. There is no form of recycling for businesses and there is no source for recyclable waste integrated in the new plan. Although the city is packed with retail shops and res- taurants, all their waste, including cardboard boxes, glass bottles and organic waste is collected togeth- er," she said." And while businesses in Valletta pay a separate fee for waste collec- tion and have their waste collected separately from residents, busi- ness owners are never informed who the collecting companies are, which means that if a problem oc- curs they cannot contact anyone. There are around four of five different waste collecting compa- nies in Valletta just for restaurants owners, on top of different collec- tors for retail, a waste collector for residents, as well as the bulky ser- vices. "It is polluting Valletta with a lot of unnecessary vehicles," the res- taurateur said. She believes such issues should not be tackled just by politicians, but also by experts in the area. "Although the politicians tack- ling issues in Valletta are trying to create better systems, they do not properly know how to logisti- cally manoeuvre the issues." This, she says, is evident in the idea that fines of up to €2,000 would fix such problems like waste collection. "It's very hard for businesses to bring in deliveries and supplies throughout the week, not to men- tion the massive parking problem inside the city. These issues should all be tackled together, rather through than separate plans which create further problems." Proposed rubbish collection hours 'logistical nightmare' for Valletta, says shop-owner PARLIAMENTARY Secretary for Consumer Protection and Valletta 2018 Deo Debattista launched a public consultation with residents and business owners in Valletta on proposed changes in the Litter Act re- garding waste management in Valletta. Under the proposed changes, waste will be collected between midnight and 3am, and be- tween 3pm and 5pm every day, including Sundays and public holidays. Those caught taking out waste outside imposed time slots would be subjected to a €200 fine on first offence. This could be upped to €500 on sec- ond offence, and to €1,000 on third or any further offence. Those caught collecting waste from Valletta using un- authorised vehicles would be guilty of criminal offence and can be fined up to €2,000. Recently, reports read that domestic waste collection in Valletta costs more than five times the national average, and that rubbish was being left on the streets by restaurateurs. Joe Attard, CEO of Green- MT, said Valletta's residents contribute 4.3 tonnes of mixed waste every day and 1,570 tonnes annually and that as at 2016, the total amount of resi- dential and commercial mixed waste was of 4,056 tonnes, with the cost of recyclable collection standing at €1,534 per month.