Maltese legislation mitigating the effects of climate change

Abstract

One of the ways of addressing climate change is through mitigation, which consists of actions taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The objective of this thesis is to identify relevant legislation and its implementation in order to determine how Malta is fulfilling its obligations. This leads to an evaluation of what is needed in order to have an effective legal framework for Malta with respect to the issue of climate change mitigation. The first chapter of the thesis gives a brief account of the historical developments that took place In the International scene to address climate change. This is followed by an identification of the sources of Malta's obligations in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 examines the EU ETS Directive and its transposition into Maltese law. The revision of the EU ETS for the trading period commencing in 2013 is also considered. Chapter 4 looks at measures to reduce emissions covered by the EU ETS Directive. These include measures to conserve energy and to promote energy generation from renewable sources. In Chapter 5, the focus is on non-ETS emissions, which are addressed by the EU Effort-Sharing Decision. Attention is given to the various applicable laws and measures that will help Malta to fulfil its obligations in the 'non-ETS sectors', namely: transport, industrial processes and solvent use, agriculture and waste. This then leads to an appraisal of what needs to be done to further assist Malta in reaching its target under the Effort-Sharing Decision. Chapter 6 considers possible requirements for an effective legal framework within which Malta can fulfil its obligations, with particular reference to the prospect of having a Climate Change Act. The concluding chapter presents the main highlights of this thesis.