SME Chamber President meets MDB Officials
22 April 2024
Malta Chamber of SMEs President Mr Paul Abela met MDB Chairman Leo Brincat and CEO...
MEPA New General Binding Regulations for various sectors
18 July 2011
The Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) will shortly issue General Binding Rules (GBRs) that affect several of the sectors represented by GRTU. GRTU representatives President Paul Abela and Joseph Attard have already had a first meeting with MEPA officials regarding the subject. It was agreed that meetings for the individual sectors would be organised during which MEPA Officials would explain the implications of these General Binding Rules which are currently in the stage of drafting.
The GBRs and Guidance Notes are intended to regulate small scale enterprises through a standard set of environmental conditions, related to waste management, emissions tin the atmosphere, effluent discharges and storage of materials and chemicals. A separate set of GBR conditions has been drafted for each sector (or groups of sectors) that have been identified as being of particular environmental concern.
Unless explicitly specified, enterprises of minimal environmental significance (such as insurance companies) are exempt from control through a GBR or Permit. These provisions shall not be applicable to larger scale activities, which would be required to comply with a specific environmental permit issued by MEPA (to be the subject of a public consultation exercise that is to follow). GRTU is informed that the introduction of these GBRs will be in phases according to what MEPA have deemed to be priority sectors or otherwise. Below are the sectors for which there is a GBR:
This week GRTU will be holding the fist meeting on Sunday 10th July at 10.00am for the Waste Management Sector, which includes Waste Carriers, Waste Brokers and operators of Waste Management Facilities.
MEPA have also recently issued for Public Consultation two additional GBRs in relation to Land Remediation and Hull Cleaning of vessels. One can view guidance notes or GBS (drafts) through the MEPA website.
