€200,000 for four towns to ‘green up’

Environment minister Leo Brincat has launched a government pilot project for the allocation of funds to four localities around Malta and Gozo in a bid to provide larger green spaces.

Fgura, Msida, St Paul’s Bay, and Victoria in Gozo will each be granted €50,000 in funds.

“It is our wish to make urban zones a little bit greener,” Brincat said. “We are committed to doing this, however modest this move might seem.”

Brincat said the local councils will determine in which ways the funds should be utilized. “We are ready to offer any logistical feedback and, of course, scrutiny will be carried out by government on the various projects,” he said. “But it would not have made sense not to involve such big stakeholders such as the local councils. The councils will implement the projects.”

Brincat said that if successful, he will lobby with the finance ministry to implement the pilot project on a nationwide basis. “These types of initiatives will certainly raise the quality of life for both the residents of these localities, as well as for visitors.”