Even though rubbish and recycling remain an issue in Malta, the last couple of months have seen a resurgence in proactiveness. Be it clean ups or petitions, a certain level of civic duty has definitely intensified within the nation. But not everyone seems to be on the same page, as an email reply by a certain Local Council earlier this week clearly showed.

It all started with a notorious corner in the locality. The corner had a small bin which regularly overflows, with much of the waste ending up on the pavement. In an attempt to solve this, the Local Council removed the bin entirely, hoping it would make people stop resorting to the street corner to dispose of their rubbish. It didn’t.

A photo of the corner with random rubbish sprawled on the pavement (from bags and boxes to a what looks like a whole carpet) was sent in to the Local Council last week, along with a request to replace the bin that once used to featured on the spot. 

The Local Council’s reply was one simple sentence that was clear as it was baffling to many; the bin would not be replaced… because “it’s a landmark for rubbish.”

As expected, the reply provoked the ire of many people, no less the members of the increasingly active Malta Clean Up Facebook group. 

On a post re-sharing the email response, in fact, MCU founder Camilla Appelgren had a thing or two to say about the mentality behind the official decision. “This is the worst thing a council can do and we need to stop pretending that this is a solution,” Appelgren said. “It’s not.”

The Swedish-Maltese activist also took the time to share her group’s mission statement, along with the psychology behind enabling or disabling waste management in Malta. 

“As it is today, the one in charge (the council or government) punish the wrong actor,” Appelgren had written back in February, nearly perfectly predicting such a case. “They punish the Society and the Law Abiding Citizen by disabling the service. The Offender won’t care that there is no bin or bring-in site or little recycling, cause the intent to do right wasn’t there to start with.”

Camilla offered four possible solutions to such issues, from setting up clear rules and proper education to placing the bins in areas where people actually need them.

She also encouraged local councils to “cheer civic pride and communicate every now and then openly.” She said she wanted people to feel empowered, and that, as with other things, “persistence is the key.”

“By removing the bin, you actually don’t solve anything,” Appelgren said. “You just move the issue to the next bin…”

What do you think of the situation? Let us know in the comments below

READ NEXT: Horse Skeleton With 10-Year-Old Medical Drip Found On Public Land In Żebbuġ

David Grech Urpani

Lovin Malta's Head of Content, Dave has been in journalism for the better half of the last decade. Prefers Instagram, but has been known to doomscroll on TikTok. Loves chicken, women's clothes and Kanye West (most of the time).