Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King Martin Luther King was an extremely inspirational Individual, a humanitarian, call rights activist In fact. He led the Montgomery Bus Boycott In 1955, helped CLC In 1957, helped to organism the March on Washington 1 963 in which he presented his ‘l Have a Dream' speech gaining his reputation as one of the greatest orators in American history. King, born son of Reverend Martin Luther King Sir. Spent most of his early life within church, singing amongst the choir in 1939.He attended Booker T. Washington High school, and then attended Morehouse College without officially graduating school. Then graduated from Crower Theological Seminary with a Bachelor of Totally degree 1951 furthermore, gaining his Doctor of Philosophy In 955, achieving an intelligent and large amount of qualifications which, within the time zone, was extremely unusual as segregation was large within America, specifically, the Deep South.King was one of many leaders yet, what made King so highl y respected and celebrated was his passion for change. King is mainly remembered due to his Inspirational speeches ‘l Have a Dream' for example, which he presented during the call rights march on 1963, Washington of August. In which, he gained respect and admiration from people of all races, being referred to as a ‘Moses' by his lieutenants, during his speech aimed for mainly African-Americans and their segregation, calling out with a nonviolent revolution.Kings admiration from many individuals was proven amongst his death, 1968, as the non-violent movement came to an immediate halt. Yet, not everyone agreed with King's tactics, Malcolm X for example, flying King's non-violent approach, stating that ‘If the man puts a hand on you- send him to the cemetery' Portraying that human self-defense should be remissive, many black individuals praised Malcolm X due to this and believed that a man of bravery should fight back, therefore winning his opponents respect.On the ot her hand, although many applauded Malcolm X for his opinion of self-defense, a larger quantity of black individuals favored King's approach portraying that his judgment and approaches were more successful and presented within a better light, creating positivist for change. Martin's many speeches create a ‘hair rising' upshot, touching our hearts and Imaginations, why?King simply used Imagery, as of which a writer would within his books to grab their reader, yet, King's persuasive imagery created a stir of emotional change, causing his listeners to create their perfect world in their heads , a desegregated America. This then resulted in why King's many followers, did follow him, his powerful, persuasive speeches along with his actions that backed up his many promises. One of which, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955, lasting 382 days In which King provided leadership for the demonstration.The NAACP, Women's Political Company and King drafted three demands for the bus company: sea ting is to be available on a first-come, first-serve axis, drivers have more respect towards black passengers and also, black drivers are hired. Almost 20,000 black individuals supported the MOB resulting in numerous buses driven with empty seats due to black people's usual need for bus transport to and from work, The bus company's refusal resulted In the organization of WA: promise as a leader from only twenty-six, King's leadership skills commenced and transformed from this.The Montgomery Bus Boycott eventually ended, resulting in a huge change within Montgomery and Kings life, creating positivist for change within lack communities and sparking Martin's lead to fame and admiration. Following on from this, during the Montgomery Bus Boycott, King had a religious epiphany in which, when praying aloud felt the sudden presence of God, describing this as a never before presence.King explained that this experience redirected him to the pathway of danger of the Boycott and further protest s, despite the threat that portrayed. Ghanaian on the other hand, was another major influence for King. Shindig's policy of non-violence within India; Kings Involvement in civil rights was therefore tryingly related to Protestant faith. The success of the Bus Boycott placed King as president of the CLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) in 1957, the ideals, Christianity yet the method of non-violence, Ghanaian.The assassination of Martin Luther King, 4th April 1968, was a shock to many, the recent killing of John F. Kennedy was as great a shock and King's assassination was the final straw. Depression and anger flooded the streets, black individuals protested once again, yet with violence. Molotov cocktails, bricks and guns were aimed towards anything that depicted white schism, once night drew, more than 100,000 black individuals created havoc and chaos across the country.The assassination of Martin Luther King destroyed the words he once spoke, ‘non-violence' Their fi ght for freedom and desegregation which was once a non-violent movement came crashing down perhaps to represent the life they had taken, the man which had persuaded the black community as well as many white individuals to come together, the man who made a change, the man who was widely known and favored was now gone. Martin Luther King, the man who changed the world. Word count: 852 Martin Luther King Alan Mason period 8 Martin Luther King v. Malcolm X Martin Luther King has been known for using peace to help him get equality among all people but especially African-Americans. He was not the type of leader that resorted to violence in order to get the equality that he fought for. King has been known for moving people by the use of his speeches like King's I Have a Dream and Vive Been to the Mountaintop speeches. King shows through these speeches that even though he was determined to get equal rights for every African-American, he as only going to stick to subtle, nonviolent ways like court cases, protest, and boycotts.This philosophy Is the exact opposite to Malcolm X, another Call Rights Leader, who thought that African American should not waste their time on protest and boycotts (Document 7). Malcolm, like King, was not In favor of violence but believe that African Americans should by all meaner use violence to protect themselves when they â€Å"attacked by racists† (Docum ent 9). But, Martin Luther King's philosophy was more beneficial for the African-American community then Malcolm Ax's because the effort that he put into his nonviolent philosophy made gaining rights more successful and more meaningful.Martin Luther King showed that he had the better philosophy compared to Malcolm X because of his stance on violence. One way King upheld his beliefs was through protest. King said in his Our God is Marching speech, â€Å"We are on the move now. The burning of our churches will not deter us. We are on the move now. The bombing of our homes will not dissuade us† (Document 4). So Protesters, including King himself were having their homes burned down for retesting for what they believe is right. In March of 1965 King and other protesters walked in order to raise awareness of the need for a Voting Right Act. This Act was passed later that year.But even though they achieved their goal for voting right does not mean that the protesters did not receive opposition for their actions. Mass arrest, police attacks, and state troopers blockading all occurred throughout the walk. If King chose to fight back then that could have either delayed getting the Voting Right Act approved, or it may have been felt that African-Americans did not deserve to get the Act approved. But King Just showed by obtaining from violence you can still get what you want. Martin Luther King showed that there were other ways to fight for what you want aside form fighting itself.King did this by using boycotts and strikes. He said, â€Å"There Is nothing quite so effective as refusal to cooperate economically with the forces and Institutions. † King realized that one of the ways he was going to get American to give them the rights that African-Americans wanted was by disrupting the flow of money that was going Into the Caucasian shops. This meaner by not buying from places that o not offer Jobs for African-Americans then those businesses would see how much they needed the African-American community, even If It meant having to hire African- American workers.Malcolm X did not agree with boycotts and strikes he said, â€Å"We have to learn how to own and operate the businesses of our community and develop to be involved in picketing and boycotting other people in other communities in order to get a Job† (Document 7). But this idea completely went against the philosophy of being together not separate. If this would have happened then the country would eave always been separate and things would have never been equal.Martin Luther king has been known for using his words instead of his fist when it comes to defending what he many thousands of others believed to be correct. King once said in his I Have a Dream speech that he had a dream that â€Å"former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood†¦ They will not be Judged by the color of their skin but by their charac ter†¦ We will be able to work together, pray together, to struggle together, to go o Jail together, to climb up for freedom together† (Document 2).King fought for African Americans rights by using his words. He told the people of his desires for and equal and fair life where people could live in harmony with each other and not be judged by their skin tone. He thought of a time where there would be no more separate but equal as were stated prior, people would be able to â€Å"work together†¦ And go to Jail together. † (Document 2) So by using his speeches where thousands of people came to listen to him talk, he moved a nation to be in favor of his reasoning's.In conclusion, Martin Luther Kings philosophy was more beneficial for the African- American community then Malcolm Ax's because the effort that he put into his nonviolent philosophy made gaining rights more successful and more meaningful. King kept up with his no violence idea by participating in other thi ngs that got America's attention like protest, boycotts and speeches. King striver to achieve equality and because of his hard efforts he has succeeded in more ways than one to help African-Americans get the same civil rights as Caucasian Americans. Martin Luther King I admire Martin Luther King Jr. ; his transformational leadership was and remains important throughout American History. He inspired thousands of people with his speeches. His famous speech â€Å"I Had a Dream† shows his leadership style, he was very effective in giving his message. Although many transformational leaders have been remembered in the past decades, Martin Luther King Jr. has created a legacy. If it wasn’t for his transformational leadership, our nation could be in a different mindset overall. He had a way to get people working together rather than fighting. He was quiet and listened slowly while others would speak. His visions developed easily with others to excite and convert followers. His example of a servant leadership is the most important lesson I feel he has left behind. Being a servant leader that offers not only inclusive vision, but listens carefully to others, persuades through reasons and helps while building the community. Believing in others was key to his success. Transformational leaders create visions that inspire and motivate others to strive for a goal in leading others. Martin Luther King was passionate about his visions and was committed to success no matter what he had to face. He was a preacher who believed when people were seeing what the color of your skin was; they were all equal in God’s eyes. One idea that Martin Luther King shared in his message was how freedom could be accomplished without violence. He preached racial equality and wanted a nonviolent world filled with peace. Martin Luther King had an effective way of speaking to people. Usually he spoke to large emotional crowds, encouraging peace. His self-confidence translated to courage. Dr. King had the ability to create and communicate his visions during his speech. His persuasion and demeanor made him an effective leader. He was able to motivate thousands of people who were in desperate need and angry people who acted violently. He changed their perspective and led them to non violent acts. He was direct and honest. He was a man of influence because he knew the existing conditions and focused on changing the culture. It was a challenge to work against angry people who resisted him because he wanted a change. Martin Luther King was successful though his followers, his example of being non-violent and living in peace led his followers to have the same vision and live it. He was able to shift an entre culture by using the transformational leadership style to effectively motivate change throughout the world. Martin Luther King demonstrated his role as a leader by showing how much he cared and putting needs of others first. His way of motivating others with his speech opened optimistic views for his followers. His leadership style reached many people’s lives and gave them an emotional connection, which led to more followers. His message wasn’t only what caught the follower’s attention, but his level of education qualified him to be a respected leader. Many African Americans at the time were not graduating high school, yet he had a PhD from a respected school named Boston University. As we’ve learned transformational leaders also show Individual consideration in the same way – â€Å"Leaders also mentor followers by teaching and sharing knowledge and skills in addition to showing emotional concern and support†. (Weiss, 2012). Martin Luther King also showed Individualized consideration to his followers, and it was well trusted by his followers. Martin Luther King Jr. included ethical standards to consistently attempt to â€Å"do the right thing’. Leaders using their vision to inspire and transform will show in their actions. He was known to practice the same leadership he preached. Martin Luther King always spoke about the hopes and aspirations of his followers. His actions appealed to peoples highest standards of ethics and morality which is where most of his decisions came from. Great leaders possess high ethical standards and set examples for their followers who do the right thing. Martin Luther King Martin Luther King Martin Luther King was an extremely inspirational Individual, a humanitarian, call rights activist In fact. He led the Montgomery Bus Boycott In 1955, helped CLC In 1957, helped to organism the March on Washington 1 963 in which he presented his ‘l Have a Dream' speech gaining his reputation as one of the greatest orators in American history. King, born son of Reverend Martin Luther King Sir. Spent most of his early life within church, singing amongst the choir in 1939.He attended Booker T. Washington High school, and then attended Morehouse College without officially graduating school. Then graduated from Crower Theological Seminary with a Bachelor of Totally degree 1951 furthermore, gaining his Doctor of Philosophy In 955, achieving an intelligent and large amount of qualifications which, within the time zone, was extremely unusual as segregation was large within America, specifically, the Deep South.King was one of many leaders yet, what made King so highl y respected and celebrated was his passion for change. King is mainly remembered due to his Inspirational speeches ‘l Have a Dream' for example, which he presented during the call rights march on 1963, Washington of August. In which, he gained respect and admiration from people of all races, being referred to as a ‘Moses' by his lieutenants, during his speech aimed for mainly African-Americans and their segregation, calling out with a nonviolent revolution.Kings admiration from many individuals was proven amongst his death, 1968, as the non-violent movement came to an immediate halt. Yet, not everyone agreed with King's tactics, Malcolm X for example, flying King's non-violent approach, stating that ‘If the man puts a hand on you- send him to the cemetery' Portraying that human self-defense should be remissive, many black individuals praised Malcolm X due to this and believed that a man of bravery should fight back, therefore winning his opponents respect.On the ot her hand, although many applauded Malcolm X for his opinion of self-defense, a larger quantity of black individuals favored King's approach portraying that his judgment and approaches were more successful and presented within a better light, creating positivist for change. Martin's many speeches create a ‘hair rising' upshot, touching our hearts and Imaginations, why?King simply used Imagery, as of which a writer would within his books to grab their reader, yet, King's persuasive imagery created a stir of emotional change, causing his listeners to create their perfect world in their heads , a desegregated America. This then resulted in why King's many followers, did follow him, his powerful, persuasive speeches along with his actions that backed up his many promises. One of which, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955, lasting 382 days In which King provided leadership for the demonstration.The NAACP, Women's Political Company and King drafted three demands for the bus company: sea ting is to be available on a first-come, first-serve axis, drivers have more respect towards black passengers and also, black drivers are hired. Almost 20,000 black individuals supported the MOB resulting in numerous buses driven with empty seats due to black people's usual need for bus transport to and from work, The bus company's refusal resulted In the organization of WA: promise as a leader from only twenty-six, King's leadership skills commenced and transformed from this.The Montgomery Bus Boycott eventually ended, resulting in a huge change within Montgomery and Kings life, creating positivist for change within lack communities and sparking Martin's lead to fame and admiration. Following on from this, during the Montgomery Bus Boycott, King had a religious epiphany in which, when praying aloud felt the sudden presence of God, describing this as a never before presence.King explained that this experience redirected him to the pathway of danger of the Boycott and further protest s, despite the threat that portrayed. Ghanaian on the other hand, was another major influence for King. Shindig's policy of non-violence within India; Kings Involvement in civil rights was therefore tryingly related to Protestant faith. The success of the Bus Boycott placed King as president of the CLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) in 1957, the ideals, Christianity yet the method of non-violence, Ghanaian.The assassination of Martin Luther King, 4th April 1968, was a shock to many, the recent killing of John F. Kennedy was as great a shock and King's assassination was the final straw. Depression and anger flooded the streets, black individuals protested once again, yet with violence. Molotov cocktails, bricks and guns were aimed towards anything that depicted white schism, once night drew, more than 100,000 black individuals created havoc and chaos across the country.The assassination of Martin Luther King destroyed the words he once spoke, ‘non-violence' Their fi ght for freedom and desegregation which was once a non-violent movement came crashing down perhaps to represent the life they had taken, the man which had persuaded the black community as well as many white individuals to come together, the man who made a change, the man who was widely known and favored was now gone. Martin Luther King, the man who changed the world. Word count: 852 Martin Luther King Martin Luther King Martin Luther King was an extremely inspirational Individual, a humanitarian, call rights activist In fact. He led the Montgomery Bus Boycott In 1955, helped CLC In 1957, helped to organism the March on Washington 1 963 in which he presented his ‘l Have a Dream' speech gaining his reputation as one of the greatest orators in American history. King, born son of Reverend Martin Luther King Sir. Spent most of his early life within church, singing amongst the choir in 1939.He attended Booker T. Washington High school, and then attended Morehouse College without officially graduating school. Then graduated from Crower Theological Seminary with a Bachelor of Totally degree 1951 furthermore, gaining his Doctor of Philosophy In 955, achieving an intelligent and large amount of qualifications which, within the time zone, was extremely unusual as segregation was large within America, specifically, the Deep South.King was one of many leaders yet, what made King so highl y respected and celebrated was his passion for change. King is mainly remembered due to his Inspirational speeches ‘l Have a Dream' for example, which he presented during the call rights march on 1963, Washington of August. In which, he gained respect and admiration from people of all races, being referred to as a ‘Moses' by his lieutenants, during his speech aimed for mainly African-Americans and their segregation, calling out with a nonviolent revolution.Kings admiration from many individuals was proven amongst his death, 1968, as the non-violent movement came to an immediate halt. Yet, not everyone agreed with King's tactics, Malcolm X for example, flying King's non-violent approach, stating that ‘If the man puts a hand on you- send him to the cemetery' Portraying that human self-defense should be remissive, many black individuals praised Malcolm X due to this and believed that a man of bravery should fight back, therefore winning his opponents respect.On the ot her hand, although many applauded Malcolm X for his opinion of self-defense, a larger quantity of black individuals favored King's approach portraying that his judgment and approaches were more successful and presented within a better light, creating positivist for change. Martin's many speeches create a ‘hair rising' upshot, touching our hearts and Imaginations, why?King simply used Imagery, as of which a writer would within his books to grab their reader, yet, King's persuasive imagery created a stir of emotional change, causing his listeners to create their perfect world in their heads , a desegregated America. This then resulted in why King's many followers, did follow him, his powerful, persuasive speeches along with his actions that backed up his many promises. One of which, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955, lasting 382 days In which King provided leadership for the demonstration.The NAACP, Women's Political Company and King drafted three demands for the bus company: sea ting is to be available on a first-come, first-serve axis, drivers have more respect towards black passengers and also, black drivers are hired. Almost 20,000 black individuals supported the MOB resulting in numerous buses driven with empty seats due to black people's usual need for bus transport to and from work, The bus company's refusal resulted In the organization of WA: promise as a leader from only twenty-six, King's leadership skills commenced and transformed from this.The Montgomery Bus Boycott eventually ended, resulting in a huge change within Montgomery and Kings life, creating positivist for change within lack communities and sparking Martin's lead to fame and admiration. Following on from this, during the Montgomery Bus Boycott, King had a religious epiphany in which, when praying aloud felt the sudden presence of God, describing this as a never before presence.King explained that this experience redirected him to the pathway of danger of the Boycott and further protest s, despite the threat that portrayed. Ghanaian on the other hand, was another major influence for King. Shindig's policy of non-violence within India; Kings Involvement in civil rights was therefore tryingly related to Protestant faith. The success of the Bus Boycott placed King as president of the CLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) in 1957, the ideals, Christianity yet the method of non-violence, Ghanaian.The assassination of Martin Luther King, 4th April 1968, was a shock to many, the recent killing of John F. Kennedy was as great a shock and King's assassination was the final straw. Depression and anger flooded the streets, black individuals protested once again, yet with violence. Molotov cocktails, bricks and guns were aimed towards anything that depicted white schism, once night drew, more than 100,000 black individuals created havoc and chaos across the country.The assassination of Martin Luther King destroyed the words he once spoke, ‘non-violence' Their fi ght for freedom and desegregation which was once a non-violent movement came crashing down perhaps to represent the life they had taken, the man which had persuaded the black community as well as many white individuals to come together, the man who made a change, the man who was widely known and favored was now gone. Martin Luther King, the man who changed the world. Word count: 852 Martin Luther King Alan Mason period 8 Martin Luther King v. Malcolm X Martin Luther King has been known for using peace to help him get equality among all people but especially African-Americans. He was not the type of leader that resorted to violence in order to get the equality that he fought for. King has been known for moving people by the use of his speeches like King's I Have a Dream and Vive Been to the Mountaintop speeches. King shows through these speeches that even though he was determined to get equal rights for every African-American, he as only going to stick to subtle, nonviolent ways like court cases, protest, and boycotts.This philosophy Is the exact opposite to Malcolm X, another Call Rights Leader, who thought that African American should not waste their time on protest and boycotts (Document 7). Malcolm, like King, was not In favor of violence but believe that African Americans should by all meaner use violence to protect themselves when they â€Å"attacked by racists† (Docum ent 9). But, Martin Luther King's philosophy was more beneficial for the African-American community then Malcolm Ax's because the effort that he put into his nonviolent philosophy made gaining rights more successful and more meaningful.Martin Luther King showed that he had the better philosophy compared to Malcolm X because of his stance on violence. One way King upheld his beliefs was through protest. King said in his Our God is Marching speech, â€Å"We are on the move now. The burning of our churches will not deter us. We are on the move now. The bombing of our homes will not dissuade us† (Document 4). So Protesters, including King himself were having their homes burned down for retesting for what they believe is right. In March of 1965 King and other protesters walked in order to raise awareness of the need for a Voting Right Act. This Act was passed later that year.But even though they achieved their goal for voting right does not mean that the protesters did not receive opposition for their actions. Mass arrest, police attacks, and state troopers blockading all occurred throughout the walk. If King chose to fight back then that could have either delayed getting the Voting Right Act approved, or it may have been felt that African-Americans did not deserve to get the Act approved. But King Just showed by obtaining from violence you can still get what you want. Martin Luther King showed that there were other ways to fight for what you want aside form fighting itself.King did this by using boycotts and strikes. He said, â€Å"There Is nothing quite so effective as refusal to cooperate economically with the forces and Institutions. † King realized that one of the ways he was going to get American to give them the rights that African-Americans wanted was by disrupting the flow of money that was going Into the Caucasian shops. This meaner by not buying from places that o not offer Jobs for African-Americans then those businesses would see how much they needed the African-American community, even If It meant having to hire African- American workers.Malcolm X did not agree with boycotts and strikes he said, â€Å"We have to learn how to own and operate the businesses of our community and develop to be involved in picketing and boycotting other people in other communities in order to get a Job† (Document 7). But this idea completely went against the philosophy of being together not separate. If this would have happened then the country would eave always been separate and things would have never been equal.Martin Luther king has been known for using his words instead of his fist when it comes to defending what he many thousands of others believed to be correct. King once said in his I Have a Dream speech that he had a dream that â€Å"former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood†¦ They will not be Judged by the color of their skin but by their charac ter†¦ We will be able to work together, pray together, to struggle together, to go o Jail together, to climb up for freedom together† (Document 2).King fought for African Americans rights by using his words. He told the people of his desires for and equal and fair life where people could live in harmony with each other and not be judged by their skin tone. He thought of a time where there would be no more separate but equal as were stated prior, people would be able to â€Å"work together†¦ And go to Jail together. † (Document 2) So by using his speeches where thousands of people came to listen to him talk, he moved a nation to be in favor of his reasoning's.In conclusion, Martin Luther Kings philosophy was more beneficial for the African- American community then Malcolm Ax's because the effort that he put into his nonviolent philosophy made gaining rights more successful and more meaningful. King kept up with his no violence idea by participating in other thi ngs that got America's attention like protest, boycotts and speeches. King striver to achieve equality and because of his hard efforts he has succeeded in more ways than one to help African-Americans get the same civil rights as Caucasian Americans.

System Architecture

We suspect that the real reason is the lack of a comprehensive, hysteretic and unifying approach to architectural design that makes the patterns In some sense comparable. Acquirement specification into a working software and hardware system and, hence, could be seen as â€Å"programming-in-the-very-large†. Since it is an accepted doctrine that mistakes when caught in the early stages are much cheaper to correct than when discovered in the late stages, good architectural system design could be of enormous economical potential. The purpose of this paper is to take a first step in the direction of a methodology for architectural design. Or in other words, we submit that architectural design should allow a methodology and not intuition, I. E. Should be treated as a science and not as an art. In order not to become overly ambitious, and to stay within the confines of a conference paper, we will limit ourselves to information systems as the synthesis of data base and data communicat ion systems, with more emphasis on the former. 2 2. 1 Services Services and resources Since we claim that architectural design is the first step in a process that turns a requirements specification into a working software and hardware system, an essential ingredient of the design method is a uniform and rigorous requirements specification.Requirements is something imposed by an outside wow RL. For information systems the outside world are the business processes in some real-world organization such as industry, government, education, financial institutions, for which they provide the informational support. Figure 1 illustrates the basic idea. The counterpart of business processes in an information system are informational processes. Business processes proceed in a linear (as in Figure 1) or non-linear order of steps, and so do the informational processes.To meet its obligations, each step draws on a number of resources. Resources are infrastructural means that are not died to any par ticular process or business but support a broad spectrum of these and can be shared, perhaps concurrently, by a large number of processes. In an information system the resources are informational in nature. Because of their central role, resources must be managed properly to achieve the desired system goals of economy, scale, capacity and timeliness.Therefore, access to each resource is through a resource manager. In the remainder we use the term information systems in the narrower sense of a collection of informational resources and their managers. What qualifies as a resource depends on the scope of a process. For example, in decision processes the resources may be computational such as statistical packages, data warehouses or data mining algorithms. These may in turn draw on more generic resources such as database systems and data communication systems.Business Informational process 1 Process step 1 Resource manager 1 Process step 2 Process step 3 Resource manager 2 Process step 4 Resource manager 3 Process step 5 Resource manager 4 process 2 Figure 1 Business processes, informational processes and resources What is of interest from an outside perspective is the kind of support a resource may provide. Abstractly speaking, a resource may be characterized by its competence . Competence manifests itself as the range of tasks that the resource manager is capable of performing.The range of tasks is referred to as a service. In this view, a resource manager is referred to as a service provider (or server for short) and each subsystem that makes use of a resource manager as a service client (or client for short). 2. 2 Service characteristics The relationship between a client and a server is governed by a service level characteristics of the services it provides. From the viewpoint of the client the server as to meet certain obligations or responsibilities. The responsibilities can be broadly classified into two categories.The first category is service functionalit y and covers the collection of functions available to a client and given by their syntactical interfaces (signatures) and their semantic effects. The semantic effects often reflect the interrelationships between the functions due to a shared state. Functionality is what a client basically is interested in. The second category covers the qualities of service. These are non-functional properties that are nonetheless considered essential for the usefulness of a server to client. 2. Service qualities To make the discussion more targeted, we study what technical equal ties of service we come to expect from an information system. Ubiquity. In general, an information system includes a large – in the Internet even unbounded – number of service providers. Access to services should be unrestricted in time and space, that is, anytime between any places. Ubiquity of information services makes data communication an indispensable part of information systems. Durability. Information services have not only to do with deriving new information from older information but also act as a kind of business memory.Access to older information in the form of stored data must remain possible at any time into an unlimited future, unless and until the data is explicitly overwritten. Durability of information makes database management a second indispensable ingredient of information systems. Interpretability. In an information system, data is exchanged across both, space due to ubiquity and time due to durability. Data carries information, but it is not information by itself. To exchange information, the sender has to encode its information as data, and the receiver reconstructs the information by interpreting the data.Any exchange should ensure, to the extent possible, that the interpretations of sender and receiver agree, that is, that meaning is preserved in space and time. This requires some common conventions, e. G. , a formal framework for interpretation. Because informa tion systems and their environment usually are only loosely coupled, the formal framework can only reflect something like a best effort. Best-effort interpretability is often called (semantic) consistency. Robustness. The service must remain reliable, I. E. Guarantee its functionality and qualities to any client, under all circumstances, be they errors, disruptions, failures, incursions, interferences. Robustness must always be founded on a failure model. There may be different models for different causes. For example, a service function must reach a defined state in case of failure (failure resilience), service functions muss t only interact in predefined ways if they access the same resource (conflict resilience), and the effect of a function must not be lost once the function came to a Security.Services must remain trustworthy, that is, show no effects beyond the guaranteed functionality and qualities, and include only the predetermined clients, n the face of failures, errors or malicious attacks. Performance. Services must be rendered with adequate technical performance at given cost. From a client's perspective the performance manifests itself as the response time. From a whole community of clients the performance is measured as throughput. Scalability. Modern information systems are open systems in the number of both, clients and servers.Services must not deteriorate in functionality and qualities in the face of a continuous growth of service requests from clients or other servers. 3 Service hierarchies 3. 1 Divide-and-conquer Given a requirements specification in terms of service functionality and qualities on the one hand and a set of available basic, e. G. , physical resources from which to construct them on the other hand, architectural design is about solving the complex task of bridging the gap between the two.The time -proven method for doing so is divide-and conquer which recursively derives from a given task a set of more limited tasks that can be combined to realize the original task. However, this is little more than an abstract principle that still leaves open the strategy that governs the decomposition. Higher-level responsibility arrive functionality qualities composition: assemble higher-level responsibility decomposition: divide higher-level lower-level responsibilities Figure 2 Divide-and-conquer for services We look for a strategy that is well-suited to our service philosophy.Among the various strategies covered in [Est.] the one to fit the service philosophy best is the assignment of responsibilities. In decomposing a larger task new smaller tasks are defined, that circumscribe narrower responsibilities within the original responsibility (Figure 2). If we follow Section 2. 2, a responsibility no matter what its range is always fined in terms of a service functionality and a set of service qualities. Hence, the decomposition results in a hierarchy of responsibilities, I. E. Services, starting from the semantically richest though least detailed service at the root and progressing downwards to ever narrower but more detailed services. The inner nodes of the hierarchy can be interpreted as resource managers that act as both, service providers and service clients. 3. 2 Design hypothesis All we know at this point is that decomposition follows a strategy of dividing responsibilities for services. Services encompass functionality and a large number of laity-of-service (So) parameters. This opens up a large design space at each step.A design method deserves its name only if we impose a certain discipline that restricts the design space at each step. The challenge now is to find a discipline that both, explains common existing architectural patterns, and systematically constructs new patterns if novel requirements arise. We claim that the service perspective has remained largely unexplored so that any discipline based on it is as yet little more than a design hypothesis. Our method divides each step from one level to the next into three parts. Functional decomposition. This is the traditional approach.We consider service functionality a a primary s criterion for decomposition. Since the original service requirements reflect the needs of the business world, the natural inclination is to use a pure top-down or stepwise must decide whether, and if so how, the functionality should be further broken up into a set of less powerful obligations and corresponding service functionalities to which some tasks can be delegated, and how these are to be combined to obtain the original functionality. However, the closer we come to the basic resources the more hose will restrict our freedom of design.Consequently, at some point we may have to reverse the direction and use stepwise composition to construct a more powerful functionality from simpler functionalities. Propagation of service qualities. Consider two successive levels in the hierarchy and an assignment of So- parameters to the higher- level service, we now determine which service qualities should be taken care of by the services on the upper and lower levels. Three options exist for each quality. Under exclusive control the higher-level service takes sole responsibility, I. E. , does not propagate the quality any further.Under partial control it shares the responsibility with some lower-level service, I. E. , passes some So aspects along. Under complete delegation the higher-level service ignores the quality altogether and entirely passes it further down to a lower-level service. For partial control or complete delegation our hope is that the various qualities passed down are orthogonal and hence can be assigned to separate and largely independent resource managers. Priority of service qualities. Among the service qualities under exclusive or partial control, choose one as the primary quality and refine the decomposition.Our hope is that the remaining qualities exert no or only minor influences on this level, I. E. , are orthogonal to the primary quality and thus can be taken care of separately. Clearly, there are interdependencies between the three parts so that we should expect to iterate through them. 4 4. 1 Testing the design hypothesis Classical 5-layer architecture Even though it is difficult to discern from the complex architecture of today's relational DB'S, most of them started out with an architecture that took as its reference the well-published 5-layer architecture of System R [Sass, Chic].Up to hose days the architecture is still the backbone of academic courses in database system implementation (see, e. G. , [HERR]). As a first test we examine whether our design hypothesis could retroactively explain this (centralized) architecture. 4. 1. 1 Priority on performance We assume that the DB'S offers all the service qualities of Section 2. 3 safe ubiquity, the relational data model in its SQL appearance. As noted in Section 2. 3, durability is the raisin d' ©tree for DB'S. Durabil ity is first of all a quality that must be guaranteed on the level of physical resources, by non- volatile storage.Let's assume that durability is delegated all the way down to this level. Even after decades durability is still served almost exclusively by magnetic disk storage. If we use processor speed as the yardstick, the overwhelming bottleneck, by six orders of magnitude, is access latency, which is composed of the movement of the mechanical access mechanism for reaching a cylinder and the rotational delay until the desired data block appears under the read/write head. Consequently, performance dwarfs all other service qualities in importance on the lowest level.Considering the size of the bottleneck and the fact that performance is also an issue or the clients, it seems to make sense to work from the hypothesis that performance is the highest-priority quality across the entire hierarchy to be constructed. 4. 1 . 2 Playing off functionality versus performance Since we ignore f or the time being all service qualities except performance, our design hypothesis becomes somewhat simplified: There is a single top-priority quality, and because it pervades the entire hierarchy it is implemented by partial control.The challenge, then, is to find for each level a suitable benchmark against which to evaluate performance. Such a benchmark is given by an access profile, that is a sequence of operations that reflects, e. G. , average behavior or high-priority requests. We refer to such a benchmark as data staging. More expressive data model data staging data model Id wider usage context access profile resource manager I less expressive narrower Figure 3 Balancing functionality and performance on a level Consequently, our main objective on each level is determining a balance of functionality and data staging.As Figure 3 illustrates, the balancing takes account of a tandem of knowledge. On the way down we move from more to less expressive data models and at the same time from a wider context, I. E. More global knowledge of prospective data usage, to a narrower context with more localized knowledge of data usage. The higher we are in the hierarchy, the earlier can we predict the need for a data element. Design for performance, then, means to put the predictions to good use. Based on these abstractions we are indeed able to explain the classical architecture. We start with the root whose functionality is given by the relational model and SQL. The logical database structure in the form of relations is imposed by the clients. We also assume an access profile in terms of a history of operations on the logical database. We compress the access profile into an access density that expresses the probability of Joint use of data elements within a given time interval. The topmost resource manager can now use the access density to rearrange the data elements into sets of Jointly accessible elements.It then takes account of performance by translating queries aga inst the relational database to those against the rearranged, internal database. The data model on this internal level could very well still be relational. But since we have to move to a less expressive data model, we leave only he structure relational but employ duple operators rather than set operators. Consequently, the topmost resource manager also implements the relational operators by programs on sets of tepees.What is missing from the access density is the dynamics – which operations are applied to which data elements and in which order. Therefore, for the next lower level we compress the access profile into an access pattern that reflects the frequency and temporal distribution of the operations on data elements. There is a large number of so-called physical data structures tailored to different patterns – or combined associative and sequential access. The resource manager on this level accounts for performance by assigning suitable physical structures to the s ets of the internal data model.The data model on the next lower level provides a library of physical data structures together with the operators for accessing them. It is not all clear how to continue from here on downwards because we have extracted all we could from the access profile. Hence we elect to change direction and start from the bottom. Given the storage devices we use physical file management as provided by operating systems. We choose a block-oriented file organization because it makes the least assumptions about subsequent use of the data and offers a homogeneous view on all devices.We use parameter settings to influence performance. The parameters concern, among others, file size and dynamic growth, block size, block placement, block addressing (virtual or physical). To lay the foundation for data staging we would like to control physical proximity: adjacent block numbering should be equivalent to minimal latency on sequential, or (in case of RAID) parallel access. Th e data model is defined by classical file management functions. The next upper level recognizes the fact that on the higher levels data staging is in terms of sets of records.It introduces its own version of sets, namely segments. These are defined on pages with a size equal to block size. Performance is controlled by the strategy that places pages in blocks. Particularly critical to performance is the assumption that record size is much lower than page size so that a page contains a fairly large number of records. Hence, under the best of circumstances a page transfer into main memory results in the transfer of a large number of Jointly used cords. Buffer management gives shared records a much better chance to survive in main memory.The data model on this level is terms of sets of pages and operators on these. This leaves Just the gap to be closed between sets of records as they manifest themselves in the physical data structures, and sets of pages. Given a page, all records on the page can be accessed with main memory speed. Since each data structure reflects a particular pattern of record operations, we translate the pattern into a strategy for placing Jointly used records on the same page (record clustering). The physical data resource manager places or retrieves records on or from pages, respectively.

A Sustainable Development Strategy for the Maltese Islands

A SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR THE MALTESE ISLANDS 2007-2016 Proposed by the National Commission for Sustainable Development 2 A SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR THE MALTESE ISLANDS 2007-2016 National Commission for Sustainable Development 20th December 2006 This proposed Sustainable Development Strategy for the Maltese Islands was adopted by the National Commission for Sustainable Development on 13 November 2006, in terms of Article 8 (7f) of the Environment Protection Act (Chapter 435 of the Laws of Malta).It is being submitted by the Commission to the Cabinet of Ministers for possible endorsement by the Government of Malta. This document does not necessarily reflect the views of the Government of Malta. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Objective and Mandate Sustainability is a Two-way Street Implementing the Strategy Layout Priority Areas 1. INTRODUCTION 1. 1 The Process of Drafting the Strategy 1. 2 The Mandate 1. 3 The Main Benefits of a Sustainable Development Strategy 1. 4 The Criteria Underpinning the Strategy 1. Layout of the Document 2. UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES 2. 1 The Overarching Vision and Goal 2. 2 Sustainability is Multifaceted 2. 3 The Democratic Dimension: Participation is Necessary 2. 4 Social Responsibility and the Ethical Dimension 2. 5 The Political Dimension: Integrative Legislation and Policy 2. 6 The International and Regional Dimensions 3. THE PROPOSED STRATEGY FOR MALTA 3. 1 Managing the Environment and Resources 3. 2 Promoting Sustainable Economic Development 3. 3 Fostering Sustainable Communities 3. 4 Cross-cutting Strategic Issues 3. Cross-cutting Strategic Issues 5 5 6 6 7 7 9 9 9 11 11 11 12 12 12 12 13 13 14 15 15 35 47 57 58 4. IMPLEMENTING THE STRATEGY 4. 1 Institutionalising the Development of the Strategy 4. 2 Identifying Responsibilities and Structures 4. 3 Setting Targets, Monitoring and Evaluation 4. 4 Devising Participatory Schemes 4. 5 Collaboration between the Public and Private Sectors 4. 6 Coordinating a nd Funding the Strategy 5. THE WAY AHEAD 5. 1 Revising the Strategy 5. 2 Ongoing Consultation 6. THE PRIORITIES APPENDIX 1: PRIORITY STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS 63 63 63 65 65 67 68 69 69 69 71 73 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The process of drafting the National Strategy for Sustainable Development was initiated during the 5th meeting of Malta’s National Commission for Sustainable Development (NCSD), held on 9 December 2002, when the Commission appointed a Task Force to oversee the preparation of a National Strategy for Sustainable Development, consisting of an overarching vision and principles, listing the aspirations of Government, civil society and the private sector in this regard, and outlining methods of implementation, taking into account Malta’s capacities and constraints.This decision was taken in line with the functions of the Commission, as listed in Article 8(7) of the Environmental Protection Act (Act XX 2001). The Task Force met soon after it was appointed and set in mot ion a consultative process to prepare the National Strategy for Sustainable Development. In March 2006, the National Commission for Sustainable Development appointed a second Task Force, in order to update the original draft of the National Strategy for Sustainable Development, published in July 2004, by incorporating suggestions put forward by various organisations and individuals that were consulted during 2004 and 2005 and by government ministries, departments and public sector agencies that were onsulted in March 2006. That version was published in April 2006,2 and presented for discussion at a National Conference on Sustainable Development, held on 22 April 2006 at the Mediterranean Conference Centre. A third draft of the Sustainable Development Strategy for the Maltese Islands was drawn up to incorporate suggestions put forward during the April 2006 Conference.Following a second round of consultation with government departments and other public sector agencies, a fourth draft (the current document) was prepared by a third Task Force appointed by the Commission for Sustainable Development and presented to the Commission on 13 November 2006. The Commission adopted this document and decided to submit it to the Cabinet of Ministers for possible endorsement by the Government of Malta This proposed Strategy represents the views of the NCSD and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Government of Malta. Objective and MandateThe objective of drawing up a National Strategy for Sustainable Development was first established in the aftermath of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), when the Maltese Government, together with the governments of other nations, committed itself to adopt such a Strategy so as to â€Å"build upon and harmonise the various sectoral, economic, social and environmental policies and plans that are operating in the country† and to â€Å"ensure socially responsible economic development while protec ting the resource base and the environment for the benefit of future generations. Governments also agreed that the Strategy should â€Å"be developed through the widest possible participation† and that it should be â€Å"based on a thorough assessment of the current situation and initiatives† (Agenda 21, Chapter 8, paragraph 8. 7). In September 2000, some 150 Heads of State, including Malta, signed the Millennium Declaration and reaffirmed their support for the principles of sustainable development and Agenda 21. They also agreed on the Millennium Development Goals, including the need to â€Å"integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources. (Millennium Development Goal 7). 1 2 See http://home. um. edu. mt/islands/ncsd/analysis_public_consultation. pdf http://home. um. edu. mt/islands/ncsd/draftstrategydocument_2006. pdf 5 This activity at UN level prompted the European Union to p repare its own Strategy for Sustainable Development3 in 2001, which was renewed in June 2006. The EU Strategy contains targets and actions on seven key priority challenges, and outlines guiding principles for sustainable development.The Malta Strategy builds upon and is informed by the Sustainable Development Strategy of the EU. In addition, as a result of its accession to the EU, Malta has embarked on wide-ranging reforms in various sectors, produced national strategic documents in key areas, transposed EU directives in line with the acquis communautaire, upgraded its environmental legislation, and bound itself to adopt measures which are strategically aimed at achieving sustainable development goals.Malta’s Strategy is also in line with the Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable Development. 4 These commitments, among others, have imposed an obligation and a mandate for Malta to adopt a sustainable development strategy. Malta has, following UNCED, undertaken various actions which can be considered conducive to sustainable development. These were however not couched within an overarching sustainable development strategy. This Strategy is intended to satisfy this need.It is the result of the dedicated work of members of the National Commission for Sustainable Development, particularly those forming part of the task forces appointed by the Commission, and also draws on extensive public consultation. It contains an overarching vision and related principles, reflecting the aspirations of the people as expressed in the consultation process. It sets targets and related performance indicators in line with such aspirations and with national commitments, and outlines methods of implementation taking into account Malta’s capacities and constraints.This proposed Strategy for Sustainable Development reinforces the strategic vision identified in key Malta Government policy documents, including the National Reform Programme and the Draft National Strategic Re ference Framework. Sustainability is a Two-way Street In various parts of this document, civil society participation is encouraged. Such participation should not be taken to imply armchair criticism, but involvement in the pursuit of sustainable development goals.While it is the Government’s responsibility to officially formulate, fund and implement the national sustainable development strategy, there is an equal responsibility placed on individuals, constituted bodies and civil society in general to play their part in supporting initiatives that foster sustainable development, as a way of achieving a better quality of life for current and future generations. This may involve changes in the way individuals conduct their life, but social responsibility is central to the concept of sustainable development. Implementing the StrategyThe success of this Strategy will lie in its implementation. A prerequisite for successful implementation is an Action Plan relating to the strategic directions, particularly the priority ones. The Action Plan needs to include specific indicators, budget allocations and time frames, thus rendering it amenable to regular monitoring. This Strategy should be undertaken once the priority strategic directions are approved by the Government. 3 â€Å"A sustainable Europe for a Better World: A European Union Strategy for Sustainable Development† COM (2001) 264 final. See http://www. planbleu. org/actualite/uk/MediterraneanStrategySustainableDevelopment. html 6 Layout This report is organised in six chapters. Chapter 1 describes how the Strategy was drawn up and the criteria underpinning it. Chapter 2 explains the overarching vision underpinning the Strategy, referring to the various dimensions of sustainable development. Chapter 3, which presents the Strategy, is structured in four sections, covering the environmental, economic and social pillars of sustainable development, as well as cross-cutting issues.Chapter 4 deals with the implementation of the Strategy. Chapter 5 presents suggestions for the way forward, with a reminder that the Strategy is an ongoing process requiring periodic revisions. The final chapter lists the priority areas, accompanied by indicators and targets. The focal point of this document is Chapter 3, which, as stated, contains the proposed Strategy, under the following four main headings: (1) managing the environment and resources; (2) promoting sustainable economic development; (3) fostering sustainable communities; and (4) cross-cutting strategic issues.A number of strategic directions are proposed with regard to each heading. These strategic directions are only accompanied by indicators or targets in cases where priority areas are identified, and are intended to serve as guideposts for the attainment of sustainable development goals in the long term. The priority areas, on the other hand, are to be interpreted as an undertaking by Government to attain the targets indicated within the time frames indicated. Priority AreasThe document identifies 20 priority areas, which were given major importance during the consultation process and which the NCSD considered as warranting foremost attention for the attainment of sustainable development goals in Malta. These priority areas are accompanied by indicators and targets. They are considered to have a direct positive effect on society as a whole, in that they improve the quality of life of the population, are in line with sustainable development goals and could be used to gauge whether Malta is moving towards or away from sustainability.The priority strategic directions so identified are the following: 1. The Environment Climate Change. Take steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through transport policy and an energy policy that seeks to promote environmental protection, competitiveness and security of supplies and, as a result, decouple the rate of growth of GHG emissions from economic growth. Air Quality. Take re medial action to control emissions of air pollutants (ambient levels of particulate matter, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, benzene, lead, ozone, heavy metals and nitrogen oxides), and achieve compliance with European standards.Nature and Biodiversity. Halt loss of biodiversity by 2010, and achieve management of protected areas by 2008. Freshwater. Adopt a policy with the aim of ensuring the utilisation of water resources in a manner that is environmentally and economically sustainable, while safeguarding the water needs of the population, and of the agricultural, commercial and industrial sectors, and achieve good quantitative status by 2015. Seawater. Sustain compliance with the Bathing Water Directive and achieve compliance with Barcelona Convention standards. Wastes.Prevent and minimise waste by achieving EU waste-related objectives and targets, reviewing Malta’s Waste Management Strategy by 2007. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7 7. Land use. Protect, maintain and improve the urban and rural environment and, through the planning system, protect the open countryside from uses, particularly residences, which can be more appropriately located in urban areas. Transport. Reduce car ownership rates to the EU average by 2014. Attain 1995 bus patronage levels by 2014 (40 million passengers). 8. 9. The Economy Economic Growth.Adopt policy measures so that the growth of GDP per capita in real terms occurs at a rate which will enable the Maltese economy to converge towards the EU average. 10. Employment. Create employment opportunities to generate income and improve the quality of life of the population, taking into consideration environmental and social impacts and adopt policy measures so that the ratio of total employment to the working-age population in Malta converges with the EU average and reaches at least 57 per cent by 2010. 11. Labour productivity.Adopt policy measures to increase average labour productivity at a rate of 1 per cent per annum over the EU average by 2010, while attempting to balance wages, taxation and productivity, in collaboration with the social partners. Society 12. Poverty reduction. Reduce or, at least contain, the current level of 15 per cent of the population at risk of poverty and decrease the ratio of population aged over 65 at risk of poverty from 20 per cent to 15 per cent, by 2010. 13. Labour force participation of women. Adopt policy measures so that the labour force participation rate of women increases to 40. per cent by 2010. 14. Health. Decrease the ratio of overweight/obese population in line with the EU average by 2010 by, amongst other things, enhancing the focus on healthy living and prevention, in order to reduce the need for curative care. 15. Education. Continue to adopt measures to decrease the early school leavers rate to 35 per cent by 2010 Cross Cutting Issues 16. Spatial development plan. By 2010, draw up an integrated spatial development plan to take forward the National Strategy for Sustainable Development, with the participation of major stakeholders. 7. Economic Instruments. By 2008, draw up a strategy to enhance the use of economic instruments, such as charges, taxes, subsidies, deposit refund schemes, and trading schemes to apply the polluter pays principle and to promote sustainable development in Malta. 18. Enforcement. By 2008, put in place an audit of enforcement arrangements to assess the adequacy of the current mechanisms and to promote integration of responsibilities and reduction of overlaps. Implementation 19. Institutional setup.By 2008, put in place a permanent structure, appropriately staffed and funded, to monitor and review the National Strategy for Sustainable Development on an ongoing basis, under the auspices of the National Commission for Sustainable Development, and hold an annual Conference with the participation of major stakeholders to critically evaluate progress relating to the Strategy. 20. Sustainability indicators. By 2008, establish and fund an entity responsible for compiling and evaluating sustainability indicators. This entity should work closely with the National Commission for Sustainable Development and the National Statistics Office. 1. INTRODUCTION 1. 1 The Process of Drafting the Strategy The process of drafting the National Strategy for Sustainable Development was initiated during the 5th meeting of Malta’s National Commission for Sustainable Development (NCSD), held on 9 December 2002, when the Commission appointed a Task Force5 to oversee the preparation of a National Strategy for Sustainable Development, consisting of an overarching vision and principles, listing the aspirations of government, civil society and the private sector in this regard, and outlining methods of implementation, taking into account Malta’s capacities and constraints.This decision was taken in line with the functions of the Commission, as listed in Article 8(7) of the Environmental Protection Act (Act XX 2001). The Task Force met soon after it was appointed and set in motion a consultative process to prepare the National Strategy for Sustainable Development. In March 2006 the National Commission for Sustainable Development appointed a second Task Force7, to update the original draft of the National Strategy for Sustainable Development, published in July 20048 by incorporating suggestions put forward by various organisations and individuals that were consulted during 2004 and 2005 and by government ministries, departments and public sector agencies that were consulted in March 2006. That version was published in April 20069 and was presented for discussion at a National Conference on Sustainable Development, held on 22 April 2006 at the Mediterranean Conference Centre. 0 A third draft of a Sustainable Development Strategy for the Maltese Islands was drawn up to incorporate suggestions put forward during the April 2006 Conference. Following a second round of consultation with government departments and other public sector agencies, a fourth draft (the current document) was prepared by a third Task Force11 appointed by the Commission for Sustainable Development and was presented to the Commission on 13 November 2006.The Commission adopted this document in terms of Article 8 (7f) of the Environment Protection Act (Chapter 435 of the Laws of Malta) and decided to submit it to the Cabinet of Ministers for possible endorsement by the Government of Malta. 1. 2 The Mandate With the setting up of the National Commission for Sustainable Development in 2002, in terms of the Environment Protection Act (2001), Malta took the first steps to develop a National Strategy for Sustainable Development.The NCSD’s main remit is to advocate national sustainable development across all sectors, to review progress in the achievement of such sustainable development and to build consensus on action needed to achieve further progress. The NCSD is also charged with identifying relevant processes or policies which may undermine sustainable development, and with proposing alternative processes or policies for adoption by the Government.One of the specific The Task Force was composed of Lino Briguglio, as coordinator, Godwin Cassar, Marguerite Camilleri, Victor Axiak and Ray Cachia Zammit 6 See http://home. um. edu. mt/islands/ncsd/analysis_public_consultation. pdf. 7 The second task force was composed of Lino Briguglio, as coordinator, Godwin Cassar, Marguerite Camilleri, Paul Pace, Martin Spiteri and Marisa Scerri. 8 See http://home. um. edu. t/islands/ncsd/draftstrategydocument. pdf 9 http://home. um. edu. mt/islands/ncsd/draftstrategydocument_2006. pdf 10 See http://home. um. edu. mt/islands/ncsd/conference_report_22-04-06. pdf 11 The third task force was composed of Lino Briguglio as coordinator, Godwin Cassar and Marguerite Camilleri. 5 9 tasks of the Commission is â€Å"to prepare a National Strategy for Sustainable Development† (Chapter 435 of the Laws of Malta, A rticle 8).The objective of drawing up a National Strategy for Sustainable Development was first established in the aftermath of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), when the Maltese Government, together with the governments of other nations, committed itself to adopt such a strategy so as to â€Å"build upon and harmonise the various sectoral, economic, social and environmental policies and plans that are operating in the country† and to â€Å"ensure socially responsible economic development while protecting the resource base and the environment for the benefit of future generations. Governments agreed also that the strategy should â€Å"be developed through the widest possible participation† and that it should be â€Å"based on a thorough assessment of the current situation and initiatives† (Agenda 21, Chapter 8, paragraph 8. 7). In September 2000, some 150 Heads of State, including Malta, signed the Millennium Declaration and reaffirmed their support for the principles of sustainable development and Agenda 21.They also agreed on the Millennium Development Goals, including the need to â€Å"integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources† (Millennium Development Goal 7). 12 This activity at UN level prompted the European Union to prepare its own Strategy for Sustainable Development13 in 2001, which was renewed in June 2006. The EU Strategy contains targets and actions on seven key priority challenges and outlines guiding principles for sustainable development. 4 The Malta Strategy builds upon and is informed by the EU Sustainable Development Strategy. In addition, as a result of its accession to the EU, Malta has embarked on wide-ranging reforms in various sectors, produced national strategic documents in key areas, transposed EU directives in line with the acquis communautaire, upgraded its environmental legis lation, and bound itself to adopt measures which are strategically aimed at achieving sustainable development goals.These commitments, among others, have imposed an obligation on and a mandate for Malta to adopt a National Strategy for Sustainable Development. Malta has, following UNCED, undertaken various actions which can be considered conducive to sustainable development15 but these were not couched within an overarching sustainable development strategy. The Strategy contained in this document is intended to satisfy this need. See http://www. un. rg/millenniumgoals/ â€Å"A sustainable Europe for a Better World: A European Union Strategy for Sustainable Development† COM (2001) 264 final. 14 The seven priorities emerging out of the renewed EU Strategy are: †¢ Climate change and clean energy †¢ Sustainable transport †¢ Public health †¢ Sustainable production and consumption †¢ Conservation and Management of natural resources †¢ Social inclusion, demography and migration †¢ Global poverty and sustainable development challenges. 5 See Report submitted by the Government of Malta to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002). http://home. um. edu. mt/islands/Malta_WSSD. pdf 13 12 10 1. 3 The Main Benefits of a Sustainable Development Strategy The main advantage of drawing up a National Strategy for Sustainable Development is that such a strategy informs policy-making agents across different sectors. It also provides a framework for a systematic approach within an institutionalised process of consultation and consensus building.The National Strategy for Sustainable Development should serve as a guide in prioritising actions that are undertaken by all members of society to ensure the prudent use and management of resources in a way that meets the needs of the present without compromising the needs of future generations, thus contributing to a better life for everyone. The Strategy addresses social, economic and envi ronmental concerns in a coherent manner and permits policy makers to assign relative priorities to these three pillars of sustainable development.It affords an opportunity for identifying specific initiatives and for committing authorities towards their implementation within defined time frames. The extensive public consultation exercise that was carried out enriched the process by encouraging participatory schemes, and the exercise was an educational experience in itself for the participants and facilitators. 1. 4 The Criteria Underpinning the StrategyThe criteria on which the Strategy was based are similar to those set out by the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs16 namely that the Strategy should: †¢ seek to integrate economic, social and environmental considerations; †¢ be inter-sectoral and multilayered; †¢ have a long-run perspective and an ethical dimension with regard to future generations; †¢ be developed on the basis of broad part icipation and generate a feeling of ownership by stakeholders; †¢ be backed by strong political commitment; †¢ serve to develop capacity and itself generate an enabling environment; †¢ promote the development of monitoring and assessment procedures; †¢ foster an educative process and a sustainable development culture; †¢ be coherent, in that there should be a balance between the funding potential and strategy priorities; and †¢ be anchored in sound technical and economic analysis. 1. 5 Layout of the Document This report is organised in six chapters. Chapter 2, which follows this introduction, explains the overarching vision underpinning the Strategy, referring to the various dimensions of sustainable development. Chapter 3, which presents the Strategy, is structured in four sections, covering the environmental, economic and social pillars of sustainable development, as well as cross-cutting issues. Chapter 4 deals with the implementation of the Strategy .Chapter 5 proposes a way forward, with a reminder that the Strategy is an ongoing process requiring periodic revisions. The final chapter lists the priority areas, accompanied by performance indicators and targets. 16 UN DESA (2002). â€Å"Guidance in Preparing National Sustainable Development Strategies,† available at http://www. un. org/esa/sustdev/publications/nsds_guidance. pdf 11 2. UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES 2. 1 The Overarching Vision and Goal The National Strategy for Sustainable Development is primarily aimed at improving the quality of life of all members of society, promoting convergence between the interests of different sectors and layers of society and between the interests of current and future generations. 2. 2 Sustainability is MultifacetedSustainable development must be based on a multifaceted approach, covering environmental, economic and social concerns, since the quality of life is dependent on these factors considered together and not in isolation from one a nother. This holistic approach requires a long-term view of development, rather than one based on short term economic gains. It assigns major importance to the integrity of nature and biodiversity, as well as to the eradication of poverty, the removal of social injustice and other factors that work against human welfare of current and future generations. For this reason, economic development must be planned and executed within a framework that respects environmental capacity constraints and conservation priorities.It should be emphasised that sustainable development cannot be compatible with economic stagnation and retardation – the word â€Å"development† itself suggests improvements, including material ones. It is for this reason that, in this document, the need for economic development is given due importance, emphasising the point that sustainable development is not just an environmental issue, but a multidimensional and multifaceted one. However, while it is recog nised that sustainable development objectives need to take into account economic realities, it is likewise recognised that to date, in spite of remarkable efforts towards environmental protection, such constraints have often excessively shifted the national priority towards economic requirements. The Strategy drawn up in this document acknowledges this reality.Furthermore it sets as a top national priority the need to improve our quality of life and of the environment, in an effort to safeguard the long-term prospects of economic growth and social wellbeing. 2. 3 The Democratic Dimension: Participation is Necessary Directly or indirectly, all members of society are potentially affected by decisions related to sustainable development. Public participation in decision-making is therefore an essential feature of sustainable development. Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration states that sustainable development issues are best handled with the participation of all citizens concerned, and t hat these should have the information and opportunity to be able to participate in decision-making processes, including judicial redress. Agenda 21 emphasises the need for enabling the participation of major groups.More recently, the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) Johannesburg Declaration recognised the importance of a broad-based commitment to public participation in policy-formulation, decisionmaking and implementation at all levels. In this regard, Malta has signed the UNECE Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters and, following accession to the EU, has adopted the EU directives relevant to this convention, namely Directive 2003/4/ and 2003/35. 12 Public participation is important for two principal reasons. First, public participation is a good in its own right, empowering people both individually and collectively and reducing social exclusion and alienation.Second, decision s taken through participatory processes are sounder because they are based on a broader spectrum of knowledge and are easier to implement because they are owned by a wider group of people. 2. 4 Social Responsibility and the Ethical Dimension While it is the Government’s responsibility to officially formulate, fund and implement a national Sustainable Development Strategy, there is an equal responsibility placed on individuals, constituted bodies and civil society in general to play their part in supporting initiatives that foster sustainable development, as a way of achieving a better quality of life for current and future generations. This may involve changes in the way ndividuals conduct their lives, but social responsibility is central to the concept of sustainable development. Sustainability has a strong ethical dimension and can be considered as a value to be upheld. In this regard, the issue of responsibility towards future generations takes centre stage – this a spect of sustainable development was an important component of the most widely used definition of sustainable development, as proposed by the Bruntland Commission in 1987, which states that sustainable development is the improvement in the quality of life of current generations without compromising that of future ones. There are also ethical considerations relating to science and technology, since these have major impacts on sustainability.It is important that scientific and technological developments have the improvement of quality of life as a central aim. Ethics also have an important role in the promotion and sharing of knowledge and in the participation of stakeholders in the process. The association between sustainable development and matters such as information, transparency and participation is also ethically based, as noted above. The keyword with regard to the ethical dimension of sustainable development is â€Å"responsibility† and this pertains to environmental qu ality, political matters, use of economic resources, education, culture, intergenerational concerns and international affairs. 2. The Political Dimension: Integrative Legislation and Policy The political dimension of sustainable development relates to the need for strong political commitment from all layers of authority, including Government and local authorities. It is therefore important that those in authority recognise the benefits of sustainable development and take steps to promote it. The multifaceted nature of sustainable development requires cooperation and effective linkages between the different government departments and parastatal organisations at national and local level. In this context, the National Commission for Sustainable Development is a useful and important vehicle for co-operation and effective interface, both at the national and local level, between the various Government entities.The political dimension is also relevant because the process of sustainable dev elopment requires consensus-building on the ways in which natural and economic resources are to be utilised. Sustainable development is primarily a political process since it is based on constant negotiation 13 between the various individuals and groups that have different interests with regard to the use of resources. The process also involves subsidiarity – a principle associated with the decentralisation of power and the provision of an enabling environment, including material assistance to the decentralised units, in order to achieve sustainable development objectives.In general, sustainable development requires a good legal foundation to ensure protection of the environment, to promote macroeconomic stability, to safeguard the welfare of vulnerable groups and to cater for the interests of future generations. Moreover, achieving the desired results requires an integrated approach. 2. 6 The International and Regional Dimensions Agenda 21 created a new development model, en dorsed by the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), aimed at preparing the world for the challenges of the 21st century. It placed the primary, though not exclusive, responsibility on national governments, which were expected to adopt national strategies, plans, policies and processes conducive to sustainable development, in order to secure the well-being of current and future generations.The international commitments of states to promote sustainable development at the regional and international levels emanate from ethical and mutual interest considerations. The ethical obligations stem from the concept of human solidarity. Actions by one state that place a burden on other states or that disregard the plights of other states work against such solidarity. This is one important reason why collaboration is necessary, and should also be an underlying reason for countries, Malta included, which form part of the donor country group within the United Nations to accept intern ational commitments, including those proposed at UNCED and the WSSD, even when such commitments do not produce material gains to the donor countries.Another ethical consideration is that Planet Earth has a limited capacity to deal with negative environmental, economic and social impacts, and collective responsibility in therefore called for. The ‘mutual interest’ consideration is associated with the fact that many sustainable development problems are not confined within the borders of nation-states. Obvious examples are climate change, which has an international dimension, and air and sea pollution, which generally have regional impacts. There are also economic aspects of sustainable development connected with trade and aid, which have clear regional and international mutual interest dimensions.There are many international and regional arrangements for coordination and co-operation including the United Nations, the European Union and the Mediterranean Commission for Sus tainable Development, within which Malta operates at the international and regional level. These have developed and promulgated their own sustainable development strategies and plans, and member countries have an obligation to abide by the commitments which they undertake within such organisations. 14 3. THE PROPOSED STRATEGY FOR MALTA This chapter presents the National Strategy for Sustainable Development adopted by Malta, with reference to the environmental, economic and social dimensions.These three pillars of sustainable development are interrelated and action in this regard should be integrated. In this Chapter, the three dimensions are treated separately, in different sections, for the purpose of exposition only. There are a number of cross-cutting issues which cannot easily be categorised under any one dimension, and these are considered separately in the last section of the chapter. A number of strategic directions are proposed with regard to each heading. These strategic di rections are intended to serve as guideposts for the attainment of sustainable development goals in the longer term, are only accompanied by indicators or targets in cases where priority areas are identified.The priority areas, on the other hand, are to be interpreted as an undertaking by Government to attain the targets within the time frames indicated. This proposed Strategy for Sustainable Development reinforces the strategic vision identified in key Malta Government policy documents, including the National Reform Programme and the Draft National Strategic Reference Framework. 3. 1 Managing the Environment and Resources 3. 1. 1 The Main Environmental Challenges Malta's environmental challenges have been systematically assessed in a number of official reports including the State of the Environment Report (1998, 2002 and 2005) and Malta's National Report to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002).On the basis of these reports and following an extensive consultation proce ss in connection with the drawing up of this Strategy, the following environmental challenges facing Malta were identified: †¢ Air quality and climate change †¢ Energy-efficiency and renewable energy resources †¢ Biodiversity †¢ Freshwater †¢ Wastes †¢ Marine and coastal environment †¢ Land use †¢ Transport †¢ Natural and technological risks †¢ Leisure and the environment 3. 1. 2 Air Quality and Climate Change The quality of Malta’s air should be completely safe for human health and able to support biodiversity. In addition, human activities should have the smallest possible impact on climate and on global life-supporting systems (including the ozone layer). The significant improvement in data availability since 1998 has allowed a thorough quantitative assessment of air quality over the Maltese Islands.Parallel work on determining emissions, the drawing up of a greenhouse gas inventory, as well as observation of transboundary pollution, have provided a detailed identification of sources and their relative importance, providing a sound information base for policy. 15 Electricity generation and transport are the major contributors to air pollution in Malta. In recent years, greenhouse gas emissions have increased due to the increased demand for electrical energy and the growth in private car ownership. This has resulted in atmospheric pollution by particulates, ozone, sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds including benzene and lead.A shift to better-quality and lower-sulphur fuels was made in 2004 and leaded petrol was phased out in January 2003. Results from the national air monitoring programme indicate that the two main air pollutants of concern are particulate matter and ozone, while nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide also pose challenges. The main anthropogenic sources of particulate matter are transport and electricity generation, as well as quarrying and construction activ ities. As a user of ozonedepleting substances (ODSs), Malta also contributes to dispersion in the environment of these substances. The challenge in this area is to attain EU air quality standards while ensuring efficient production and use of energy, as well as a cost effective transport system.Measures designed to encourage energy end-use efficiency, to use renewable sources of energy and to restrict overall vehicle use, including the provision of a high-quality public transport as well as traffic management measures, will be conducive towards this end. Furthermore, support for the use of alternative fuels such as biodiesel should be continued. Government has already introduced financial incentives to promote biofuels, through the exemption from excise duty of the biomass content in biodiesel.. The biodiesel produced in Malta originates from waste cooking oil, and waste collection programmes have been established. Targets for the use of biofuels in road transport have also been set . A balance needs to be found between the costs of introducing alternative fuels and the benefits of reduction in use of conventional fuels. Landfills have been a source of air pollution for many years.The rehabilitation of old landfills and the proper engineering of new ones are expected to resolve the negative impacts associated with past operating practices of Malta’s landfills. Mitigation and adaptation issues and the political and economic aspects of climate change need to be properly addressed as these involve significant economic costs and may impact heavily on Malta’s development. Adaptation to rising global surface temperatures and the anticipated consequential rise in sea level need to feature in future development strategies. In particular, future development strategies should consider the impacts of climate change on coastal areas in terms of risks to settlements and human safety, commercial activities and habitats. 16 Promote the adoption of new technologi es, including mandating use of catalytic converters, to affect †¢ Take steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through an energy policy which seeks to promote †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ environmental protection, competitiveness and security of supplies, and as a result decouple the rate of growth of energy demand from economic growth. Take remedial action to control emissions of air pollutants (ambient levels of particulate matter, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, benzene, lead, ozone, heavy metals and nitrogen oxides) and achieve compliance with European standards. Encourage people to make use of public transport or to adopt car-pooling practices in order to reduce vehicle emissions. Introduce smaller buses on certain public transport routes.Require the construction industry to reduce generation of fine dust particles. Continue to monitor landfills for air pollution and take remedial action as required. Continue to monitor transboundary p ollution and take remedial action as required. Develop a hazard map for coastal areas prone to erosion and flooding. Take action to reduce Malta's vulnerability to Climate Change. significant cut-backs in vehicle emissions. Main strategic directions with regard to air quality and climate change: 3. 1. 3 Energy-efficiency and Renewable Energy Resources. Energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy sources (RES) can be economically and environmentally advantageous.RES are not extensively used in Malta, although they may have immediate local application. Solar water heating could offset a substantial proportion of annual generation of electricity, avoiding emissions of CO2. Generation of electricity using photovoltaics (PV) is currently limited to a small number of specialised applications. The use of photovoltaics will, in practice, be determined by economic factors (the cost of panels and associated equipment), the extent to which these systems can be connected to the electricit y grid, and the associated feed-in tariff established, including any support measures for renewable electricity. Various incentives and support measures could speed up market penetration.Market forces on their own may not spur the use of RES, and government intervention in the form of subsidies or other incentives is required to encourage investors to develop these sources of energy and to encourage consumers to use them. It is important, however, to ensure that the use of RES does not pose unduly high fiscal burdens. In 2005, the Government of Malta introduced a series of measures to support electricity generation from RES. These include financial incentives in the form of grants on the capital costs of photovoltaic installations and micro-wind generation systems by domestic households. A net metering arrangement and purchase by Enemalta at established tariffs of excess electricity generated from small-scale PV systems have also been introduced.In addition, grants on the capital co st of solar thermal water heaters installed by domestic consumers and other financial incentives related to meter installation charges for new domestic consumers installing such systems have been established. The Government has also published a draft Renewable Energy Policy for Malta, with the three key objectives of promoting RES, improving the quality of life and providing support facilities and services in a holistic manner. Further reductions in CO2 emissions are likely to be attained through the construction of energyefficient buildings and the use of small combined heat and power plants by industry, the introduction of energy-efficient electric motors and drives, the proper dimensioning of airconditioning units and attendant ducting, and further use of energy-saving lamps.Emissions could also be reduced through improvements in electricity generation and use, as discussed in the previous section. Such reductions could also be attained through fuel pricing as part of an energy 1 7 policy, and through making available alternative sources such as Biodiesel, Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). The use of energy from animal waste and oil waste is also being studied and reviewed by Government. Efficiency in government electricity usage should be very visible so as to encourage private users to change their own behaviour with regard to electricity usage, as well as to curb light pollution. Such visibility includes more efficient street lighting and luminous devices used in road safety signs.Floodlighting of public buildings could also be reduced late at night. Government departments should adopt energy-efficient lighting and air-conditioning in order to lead by example. Energy-saving pilot projects by the Housing Authority should be encouraged. Main strategic directions with regard to energy-saving and renewable resources †¢ Adopt a national energy policy that seeks to improve efficiency in electricity generation and to promote a sec ure, competitively priced, and environmentally sound energy supply, †¢ Put in place an integrated approach, supported by a nationwide educational campaign, to promote energy efficiency and conservation by users. Carry out an energy audit of street lighting and propose measures to promote efficiency in lighting †¢ Step up funding for research to improve knowledge on local materials and conditions in building for energy efficiency and in the use of renewable energy sources †¢ Adopt building regulations that would include design requirements relating to thermal efficiency. †¢ Direct more development permit applicants to adopt energy efficiency measures. †¢ Promote the introduction and use of renewable energy sources through support mechanisms and other appropriate measures. †¢ Promote energy audits and energy-efficiency improvements in commercial and industrial establishments. Heighten water conservation methods to reduce dependency on reverse osmosis plan ts. 3. 1. 4 Freshwater Water in the Maltese Islands remains a scarce and basic resource and is under intense pressure from competing users. While traditional problems associated with the lack of availability of supply have been addressed mainly though significant investment in desalination plants, this has been achieved at a high cost. Furthermore, new challenges emerge as more information becomes available from studies carried out on environmental impacts. It is likely that modern technological progress will chart the way towards higher levels of efficiency in the use of water resources.The fair allocation of water resources is considered to be a major priority that needs to be addressed throughout the decision-making process. Water demand and supply need to be managed on a geographical basis, especially in areas where second class water requirements take precedence. The integrated management of water resources at water catchment district level is considered to be crucial. Availabl e water resources should be fairly allocated to the different stakeholders while taking into account sectoral requirements in terms of quality and quantity. Such an exercise would require a sound regulatory system and a clear policy, backed by legislation, that sets priorities for water use and lays the foundations for the sustainable management of water resources.In this context, Malta will have to eliminate wasteful practices and move towards the conjunctive use of groundwater with other non-conventional sources such as desalination, treated sewage effluent and stormwater. Stakeholders’ requirements, the relative supply costs and the benefits accrued, as well as the value of the externalities generated by the use of water, need to be carefully assessed. 18 The quality and integrity of groundwater bodies in the Maltese Islands are currently at risk mainly from over-exploitation (including uncontrolled private abstraction of groundwater), leading to increased salinity, and fr om contamination by excess nitrates (mainly from agriculture) and other pollutants.Information on and awareness of the importance of groundwater and the risks posed to its integrity by over-exploitation and pollution need to be more widely disseminated. The ‘polluter pays principle’, as well as the EU Environmental Liability Directive provisions, need to be more extensively used and enforced. Investment in stormwater management and flood relief are key priorities for the Maltese Islands. The installation of stormwater catchment facilities will allow this source of freshwater to be utilised for a wide variety of purposes, reducing the strain on the current freshwater resources. Furthermore, road and land development have often failed to recognise the importance of maintaining natural aquifer recharge.Legislative changes introduced in 2000 with the establishment of the Malta Resources Authority involved the separation of the regulatory and operational responsibilities pre viously carried out by the Water Services Corporation. This has led to a clear distinction of regulatory and operational roles between the regulator and the utility agency, thus promoting an improvement in the level of services provided, to the consumers as well as better regulation of the sector. Drinking water quality standards have improved during the past three years as a result of infrastructural improvements which allow a more uniform blending of groundwater with desalinated water throughout the Maltese Islands.Further improvement is foreseen as the Water Services Corporation plans to upgrade its desalination facilities in an endeavour to improve product quality and energy efficiency. The introduction of a better-regulated system for groundwater abstraction, together with enforcement of environmental measures to improve the qualitative standards of groundwater supplies, is also envisaged. In recent years, the Water Services Corporation has also stepped up its water conservatio n efforts and has reduced losses from the distribution network. Better use of harvested rainwater and treated sewage effluent is envisaged in the coming years, while further measures and incentives to store stormwater run-off in urban/semi-urban areas will be considered.Potable water quality needs to be improved in order to reach EU standards and the present plans of the Water Services Corporation and of the Malta Resources Authority to achieve this aim need to be fully implemented in a sustainable manner. Through EU Structural Funds, measures and projects are underway to improve drinking water quality. At the same time, conservation measures related to water produced through sewage treatment, controlled abstraction of groundwater, the better use of cisterns and wells, and the cleaning of existing dams and building of new ones in strategic locations need to be encouraged through the enforcement of existing legislation, a more effective consumer education programmes and, possibly, ec onomic incentives and disincentives. Measures to store rainwater, including the use of disused quarries, need to be explored.Valley beds need to be cleared from unauthorised interventions in order to allow for the safe collection of water; however, the ecological value of valleys must be recognised in addition to their water transport function, and the haphazard clearing of valleys should be prohibited. As well as supplying potable water for human use, freshwater also sustains a variety of perennial springs and small water bodies which, in turn, support a variety of species. Such freshwater ecosystems are extremely threatened by the combined effects of habitat loss and by the lack of water availability, resulting from anthropogenic activities and recurring episodes of drought.These freshwater habitats need to be very carefully managed and all efforts should be made to safeguard them before they are completely lost. To this end, the importance of such measures will be 19 reflected in the implementation of the Water Catchment Management Plan under the national legislation transposing the Water Framework Directive. Around 14. 3Mm3/year of treated sewage effluent are expected to be available for re-use in Malta and Gozo during the next five years. As a signatory to the Barcelona Convention, Malta is committed to treat all wastewater before discharging at sea, and is thus planning to set up three new sewage treatment plants: one in Gozo and two in Malta.The treatment plant in Gozo and that in the north of Malta are expected to be operational by 2008. Once the projected sewage treatment plants are operational, the country should have significant quantities of second-class water. While not suitable for human consumption, this water may be suitable for other purposes. Other uses should be explored, especially for those sectors and activities with heavy water consumption. In this regard, projects that require large quantities of water to sustain them need to be careful ly assessed for their impact on the water supply. Since sewage is increasingly being seen as a water resource, it must also be protected against contamination from hazardous industrial and other effluents.Main strategic directions with regard to freshwater: †¢ Adopt a policy with the aim of ensuring the utilisation of the nation’s water resources in a manner that is environmentally and economically sustainable. †¢ Allow the natural biodiversity of surface water eco-systems to be sustained and to flourish, and achieve good ecological status for inland surface waters by 2015 in line with the Water Framework Directive. †¢ Ensure a reliable and good-quality supply of potable water in accordance with international water quality standards. †¢ Reduce and prevent further pollution of waters with the aim of achieving good status of all water bodies by 2015 in line with the Water Framework Directive. Establish and operate comprehensive monitoring networks for all wa ter bodies in the Maltese Islands in order to reliably assess the achievement of ‘good status’ objectives in these bodies. †¢ Encourage initiatives for the adoption of water efficiency and conservation measures. †¢ Introduce effective catchment management and design roads so as to maximise the channelling of water towards reservoirs. †¢ Improve public awareness on the environmental, social and economic value of water. †¢ Strengthen and enforce regulatory measures with regard to illegal abstraction. †¢ Encourage the recycling of non-potable sources of water for secondary use. †¢ Assess projects that require large quantities of water in order to ascertain that they do not unduly create water supply shortages. Optimise the use of second-class water particularly in those sectors that make heavy use of water. 3. 1. 5 Biodiversity Though small in size, the Maltese Islands and their territorial waters support a variety of habitats and significant biodiversity which are still not adequately recognised as an environmental asset to be protected and sustained. Loss of biodiversity, i. e. the irreversible loss of species and ecosystems, can have very damaging effects on various aspects of a nation’s development. A number of endemic and sub-endemic species are not only of scientific importance but are also of evolutionary and biogeographical interest, being relics of past Mediterranean flora and fauna.Over the years, not enough commitment has been shown to protect such biodiversity, leading to rapid habitat loss and uncontrolled exploitation of wildlife. This has meant that unique and important habitats such as wetlands, sand dunes and woodlands have disappeared or are on the verge of disappearing. Furthermore, some elements of Malta’s biodiversity have a wider regional and global importance, and as such are protected under international legislation. 20 Extinction and loss of species has been documented since 1998 by the State of the Environment Reports. In spite of the introduction of substantial legal protection for important habitats during the last 15 years, effective protection has lagged behind.Effective conservation requires the allocation of financial, physical and human resources to enable management, including short- and long-term monitoring. Moreover, in situ and ex situ conservation is urgently required (e. g. propagation, habitat restoration, containment, control or eradication of invasive alien species and reintroduction of indigenous species). In spite of efforts to protect and manage indigenous biodiversity, most threatened species and the majority of endemic species, remain under threat from human-mediated activities (such as overexploitation, illegal capture and killing, land development and introduction of alien species) and from the consequences of such activities such as loss and degradation of habitats, pollution, disruption of food webs, erosion and eutrophication) that l ead to undesirable changes in ecosystems. The dwindling areas of garigue, sand dunes and cliff faces are some examples of habitats that are endangered. Due to the state of such habitats, even certain recreational activities, such off-roading, camping and abseiling, need to be better regulated. The state of knowledge of local biota is still poor and resources for the implementation and enforcement of existing regulations have still not reached the required levels. The biodiversity monitoring programme is still rudimentary and under-funded.Exploitation, whether illegal or unregulated, of a number of wildlife species and communities is still ongoing (and, in some cases, possibly increasing), mainly through hunting, trapping and fishing. The currently available data on such activities are not sufficient and not sufficiently reliable to permit a thorough assessment of the impact of such exploitation on the local biodiversity. This issue should be addressed as an immediate priority. Land reclamation in sensitive ecological areas should be prohibited and the re-use of abandoned fields encouraged. This needs to be linked to the promotion of land stewardship, establishment of ecological corridors and organic farming. The uncontrolled introduction of alien species into local eco-systems continues to be of serious concern.An increasing number of such species are establishing themselves in the wild, with adverse effects on the local eco-systems. It is widely documented globally that human-mediated activities, namely trade and tourism, facilitate the introduction and transfer of such species into new environments. Once alien species are introduced, either deliberately or accidentally, into the environment, they can establish themselves. In certain cases, alien species start to compete with native species, in which case they become invasive and could become the dominant species. Invasive alien species involve and affect a wide range of social, ecological and economic activi ties and can also affect public health.To prevent these impacts, a strategy to control existent alien species and to prevent the further introduction of alien invasive species, should be drawn up. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can be considered as alien species and the regulation of GMOs should be included in any policy and/or legislation on alien species. Malta’s official policy is that applications to deliberately release or place on the market GMOs are assessed and evaluated on a case-by-case basis and by means of a thorough scientific assessment. Support should be given to research and development to predict and prevent invasive behaviour of alien species and GMOs before they are released into the environment.The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety should be ratified and implemented in order to control transboundary movements of GMOs with the aim of providing a comprehensive and holistic approach to the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of natu ral resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits deriving from the use of genetic resources. 21 In order to comply with the EU nature protection acquis, Malta has designated an extensive network of Special Areas of Conservation, of which 31 are of international importance and which amount to a respectable 12. 5 per cent of the national territory in terms of land area. The total area of protected terrestrial habitat on the Maltese Islands relative to the total surface area compares favourably to the EU average.Additional efforts should now be made so that rare or scientifically important eco-systems not yet protected, as well as representative examples of more widespread habitats such as marine eco-systems, are afforded legal protection. Natural areas which are declared protected need to be monitored and managed in accordance with adopted management plans, the more so since this is also a legal obligation. Management plans have already been adopted for some of the sites, and others are in the pipeline. Monitoring work has been undertaken and policy provisions are being drawn up to ensure that the EU Directives are adhered to. Nonetheless, the process of agreeing on management plans for protected areas will have to be significantly accelerated in order to meet Malta's national and international obligations.A commendable dev