Sunday sermons condemning water theft and property speculation are a rarity in Catholic Malta. Neither are parish priests heard urging hunters to give up their pastime to show more respect to God’s creation.
But this could all change if priests listen to the latest report of the Church’s environmental commission.
The report warns that water theft is a sin: “The Kummissjoni Ambjent wishes that the Church in Malta, especially at the level of parishes, shows very clearly that water theft – whichever way it is done and by whoever it is done – is a sin. It is really a shame that this vital resource is being contaminated or lost because of indifference and negligence.”
Malta’s drinking water sources are endangered by over-extraction from hundreds of illegal boreholes which dot the countryside. A report by the Food Agricultural Organisation recently warned that Malta risks losing this resource in a few years’ time if no action is taken. It also warned that the government would have to treble water bills if this resource is lost.
The document courageously calls for the setting up of a fair price for water, which is currently available to consumers at a very cheap subsidised price. The Church Commission insists that the burden be shared in a socially just way.
“Unfortunately, as long as water is still available from the tap, very few people realise the dimension of the problem. We need to wake up from this dream and realise that we have to start paying a just price for the water that we are consuming.”
The document also calls on the Church to be more proactive on the hunting issue. “Unfortunately, the local Church has in the past kept away from commenting on this issue (hunting) or helped in regulating this pastime,” the commission said in a report published on Monday.
While noting that Church teachings refrain from saying whether hunting is morally admissible or not, the Commission encourages hunters to give up their pastimes.
The Commission also calls on Church authorities to be more careful in choosing the sites for edifices for pastoral, social, cultural and educational uses, and how to generate the requested funds to finance these projects.
The Commission’s call comes in the wake of the Gozo’s church decision to develop cemeteries and shrines outside development zones. “Being sustainable in your actions is not an automatic reaction, but it requires tough choices and different ways how to take difficult decisions.”
“When selling property to finance similar projects, property owners need to ensure that their land does not end up in the unscrupulous hands of speculators who would further the exploitation of land to the detriment of our society and our natural environment.”
The Commission reiterated its opposition to the extension of development zones in 2006