This year's Clean Up the World activity will be held between today and Sunday, with the usual government participation. Clean Up the World, as the name suggests, is an international activity. The activities to be held here are being organised by the Resources and Infrastructure Ministry and the Rural Affairs and Environment Ministry, with the participation of 39 primary and secondary schools, 23 local councils, six government bodies, 13 private companies, 10 NGOs and 19 other associations. The activities will be held at various localities throughout Gozo and Malta.

As in previous years, the campaign reaches its highlight at a particular site, where not only will cleaning up take place, but also other family oriented activities, which will emphasise the natural environment. This year the chosen site is the new nature and history park 'Il-Majjistral' at Mellieha. The cleaning up event there will take place on Sunday. The site covers some 2.6 square kms, and some bulky refuse has already been removed.

Resources Minister Ninu Zammit commented that there had been a reduction in illegally dumped waste, when compared to previous years, but that unfortunately it was still going on. Just this year some 9,000 tons of rubbish has been removed, at a cost of some Lm400,000 (EUR931,749.36), a sum that could have been used more profitably elsewhere, he said. Indeed, that was what it had actually cost the country to embellish Wied Babu and Hagar Qim with a new two kilometre promenade.