After life of the LIFE+ infonitrates
The Project was to introduce the obligations and its implementation to the farming
community, the scope was not only to generate awareness on the benefits of
compliance with the legal provisions both National and EU but to ensure that farmers
are knowledgeable ‘on the ground’ on what actions must be done in ensuring such
compliance is maintained.
In this regard the Ministry responsible being the Ministry for Sustainable Development
Environment and Climate Change, has delegated the ongoing monitoring and controls
as well as allow the provisions for any information to be made available from the
established Nitrates Action Unit- within the Agriculture Directorate falling under the
Rural Development Department.
The Nitrates Action Unit, apart from adopting an open door policy in receiving farmers
queries and complaints via telephone and email is also responsible in performing the
necessary controls, monitoring and evaluation exercises as requested by legislations. It
is also the Agriculture Directorate that recognises and approves technical advisors for
the drawing up of professional fertiliser plans, which would ensure to cater for the local
agronomic practices.
From the Project farmers are now knowledgeable on the necessity of following good
agricultural practices and on the local control procedures in place that are to ensure
transparency and controllability in the application, storage and transport of fertilisers.
The project helped catalyze the conception that the agriculture directorate is there to
guide the rural community with regards to the controls pertaining to Nitrates as fertilisers
and as waste (storage) as well as to enforce and take action on cases of negligence’s.
The Life+ served to ensure that a smooth mitigation exercise be followed through
integrating the rural community with the Rural development Department in ensuring
that cooperation be
Further updates to this blog including:
- Final technical Report
- Layman's report (Maltese and english)
- AfterLife Plan ( Maltese and english)
can be accessed through the following link:
