Notification of harmful organisms by citizens

According to the provisions of the Plant Quarantine Act​ , the Director of the Plant Protection Directorate, may, for the purpose of containment and eradication of plant pests, declare any plant pest to be a notifiable plant pest. A notifiable plant pest is one which presents, or is likely to present, a threat to the production of or trade in plant materials or to the natural environment and if it is either not known to be established in Malta or is established in Malta but is the subject of measures for its eradication or containment.

By virtue of the same law, the occupier or owner of any land or premises on which a notifiable plant pest is found (or may be identified as such), is duty bound to notify an officer of the Plant Health Service with immediate effect.

For this purpose, the Plant Protection Directorate has developed a dedicated mobile app, through which the occupier or owner of the land or premises in question as well as the general public can notify the presence of harmful organisms. The application is also equipped with a video library in which informative videos on harmful organisms can be found.

The main aim of this service is to simplify the legislative and bureaucratic obligations of the citizens of Malta, vis-à-vis their legal obligation to notify the plant health service of notifiable or potentially notifiable plant pests.

The service is provided through the Monitoring and Control (MC) of the PPD, which functions as the main control unit. The MC is responsible for imports and border controls, movement to and from Malta, findings, interceptions, and outbreaks, internal market control, monitoring, and surveys.