Tree planting project in Blata l-Bajda, Ħamrun and Lija

Description: During this project trees have been planted in schools located in Malta's main urban centre by hundreds of volunteers, teachers and young students.

Country: Malta

City: Hamrun and Lija

City size: 106 ha (Hamrun) and 110 ha (Lija)

Population: 9431 (Hamrun) and 3152 (Lija)

start: 2018

Timeframe: 1 Year

Phase: Complete

Nature-based solutions (NBS) : Yes

Initiator: The Grow 10 trees project; Learning About Forests (LEAF) Malta

Website source: www.g10t.eu https://www.facebook.com/events/your-sofa/planting-trees-planting-dreams-documentary-launch/2067298656682043/

Latitude: 35.9001

Longitude: 14.4482

Co-benefits

Increased quality and quantity of green and blue infrastructures

Yes, urban trees were shown to be more associated with high ecosystem delivery in urban areas in Malta (Balzan et al., 2018).

Education, knowledge exchange and learning

Yes, this project included the participation of volunteers from schools in the identified localities and has also led to the the publication of promotional audiovisual material for wider circulation.

Original problems

Low air quality

National data indicates exceedances of the EU limit values have been observed for both ozone and particulate matter (PM10). PM10 exceedences are attributed to the combined effect of human caused (traffic congestion and to a minor extent power generation) and environmental factors (e.g. dust from the Sahara). Ozone is a transboundary pollutant arriving in Malta from Europe. The concentration of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) higher in traffic congested areas and may pose a significant problem in dense urban areas (ERA, 2018b).

Drought and heat risk

The Mediterranean Region is considered as a "hot-spot" of climate change, having been identified in global climate scenarios as one of the most responsive regions to climate change (Lionello and Scarascia, 2018). There is a consensus in scientific literature that average temperatures will rise across most of the Mediterranean Region, and that precipitation will decrease (Ulbrich et al. 2013; Lionello and Scarascia, 2018). Observed annual mean temperatures in the Mediterranean Region are now 1.4 °C higher than the average late-nineteenth-century levels particularly during the summer months (Cramer et al., 2018).

Low availability of green infrastructure

Yes, because of the lack of green areas and open spaces due to urban expansion and the growing number of people living in urban areas (ERA, 2018d). Densely populated urban areas were characterised by a lower availability of green infrastructure (Balzan et al., 2018).

Limited knowledge about biodiversity

The Malta National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) reports that the results of the Eurobarometer Surveys on Attitudes of Europeans towards Biodiversity in 2007 and 2010 indicate that 14.4% and 18% respectively of Maltese respondents had heard of the term “biodiversity” and knew what it meant. A survey commissioned by MEPA in 2011 indicates that out of the 500 persons interviewed, 24.6% of Maltese respondents heard of the term “biodiversity” and knew what it meant. In general there is a need to continue enhancing biodiversity awareness and gain more knowledge on the meaning of ‘biodiversity’. (ERA, 2018d).

SDGs

Sustainable cities and communities (SDG11)

Yes, volunteers, experts and the general public were invited together in a project that aims to increase plant trees in schools, teach students how to take care of trees and inspire youths to regenerate urban areas and take care of the trees (Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector, Small Initiatives Support Scheme, 2018).

Reference: Balzan, M. V., Caruana, J., Zammit, A. 2018. Assessing the capacity and flow of ecosystem services in multifunctional landscapes : Evidence of a rural-urban gradient in a Mediterranean small island state. Land Use Policy, 75, 711–725. Retrieved from: doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2017.08.025.

Cramer, W., Guiot, J., Fader, M., Garrabou, J., Gattuso, J.-P., Iglesias, A., Lange, M.A., Lionello , P., Llasat , M.C., Paz, S., Peñuelas, J., Snoussi, M., Toreti , A., Tsimplis, M.N., Xoplaki, E. 2018. Climate change and interconnected risks to sustainable development in the Mediterranean. Nature Climate Change. doi:10.1038/s41558-018-0299-2.

ERA. 2018b. State of the Environment Report 2018: Chapter 2: Ambient Air. Reporting status from 2009 to 2015. Information obtained: 2019-11-08. Available at: https://era.org.mt/en/Documents/3_Chapter2_AmbientAir_9Aug18.pdf.

ERA. 2018d. State of the Environment Report 2018: Chapter 8: Biodiversity. Reporting status from 2009 to 2015. Information obtained: 2019-11-08. Available at: https://era.org.mt/en/Documents/Chapter8_Biodiversity_04Dec18.pdf.

Lionello, P., Scarascia, L. 2018. The relation between climate change in the Mediterranean region and global warming. In Regional Environmental Change, 2018, Volume 18, Issue 5, pp 1481–1493. Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector, Small Initiatives Support Scheme. 2018. Project Summaries 2018. Information obtained: 2019-11-22. Available at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10113-018-1290-1.

Ulbrich U, Xoplaki E, Dobricic S, García-Herrera R, Lioneallo P, Adani M, Baldi M, Barriopedro D, Coccimiglio P, Dalu G, Efthymiadis D, Gaetani M, Galati MB, Gimeno L, Goodess CM, Jones PD, Kuglitsch FG, Leckebusch GC, Luterbacher J, Marcos-Moreno M, Mariotti A, Nieto R, Nissen KM, Pettenuzzo D, Pinardi N, Pino C, Shaw AGP, Sousa P, Toreti A, Trigo RM, Tsimplis M. 2013. Past and current climate changes in the Mediterranean region. In: Navarra A, Tubiana L (eds) Regional Assessment of Climate Change in the Mediterranean. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 9–52. doi:10.1007/978-94-007-5781-3_2.