Emergent realities for social wellbeing : environmental, spatial and social pathways

When Malta joined the European Union (EU) in 2004, it was obligatory to adhere to the Union’s rigid environmental regulations. As a consequence, to date, most environmental data requires reporting in spatial formats, thus conventionally distinctive focus was given to the Geographic Information (GI) environmental aspect (EEA, 2014). In 2002 the need for integration stemming from EU obligations resulted in the amalgamation of the then Environmental Protection Department (EPD) and Planning Authority (PA) to form the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA). Prior to this merger, the PA had its own Geographic Information System (GIS) whilst the EPD did not. Throughout the years to come the EPD as part of MEPA (now called the Environment Protection Directorate, bearing the same acronym [EPD]) sought a GIS system and constantly requested data thus consuming a considerable amount of time from the GIS professionals of the Authority.peer-reviewe

MSPGI : a geoportal feasibility study - Planning Authority MSP geoportal MSP Implementation Initiative

Directive 2014/89/EU calls for Member States to apply Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) in their marine waters. In applying this framework, Member States are required to adopt a process to analyse and organise human activities to achieve ecological, economic and social objectives. The preparation of a MSP plan is the key deliverable expected from Member States and in doing so are expected to organise the use of the best available data, and decide how to organise the sharing of information necessary for MSP plans. The availability of information for stakeholders can also contribute towards effective co-ordination at a national level particularly in regulating different maritime sectors.EASME/EMFF/2015/1.2.1.3/02/SI2.742101peer-reviewe

Case study #4 : Strait of Sicily - Malta : Western Mediterreanean

The definition of spatial limits for the Strait of Sicily - Malta Case Study have been elaborated considering needs and priorities emerged from the Initial Assessment, as well as existing knowledge on: (i) maritime uses and economic domains; (ii) ecological features; (iii) legal jurisdictions and borders and (iv) transboundary issues. The definition of the case study area’s spatial limits constitute boundaries for the purpose to foster a proper analysis on human uses, ecological processes, synergies and conflicts, governance continuity, and define recommendations to establish appropriated strategies and plans. The boundaries have been drawn according to the scope of the project (e.g. to support the implementation of Maritime Spatial Planning in EU Member States with a concrete cross-border initiative) and the activities to be developed therefore on one hand they are representative of local conditions and policies and, on the other, they take in account potential transboundary and cross-border issues of MSP. The SIMWESTMED case study for Malta is focused on the Malta-Sicily marine waters, bordering the south of Sicily and the north of the Maltese Islands and including part of the continental shelves of Italy and Malta.Grant Agreement: EASME/EMFF/2015/1.2.1.3/02/SI2.742101peer-reviewe

Develop a basin scale analysis/initial assessment strongly MSP oriented for the Western Mediterranean

This Report has been created thanks to the collaboration of all the Member States involved in the SIMWESTMED project (Figure 1) that have been invited to complete the Country Fiche (CF), a document that has leaded to the development of shared knowledge regarding the marine area considered in the project. Thus, the aim of this Report is to entail a collection of information across the European countries of the Western Mediterranean region and the Strait of Sicily, including Malta waters. The Initial Assessment (IA), in fact, provides an initial overview of the area’s characteristics and this report is the harmonized output of all available information including the description of marine environment, maritime activities, key sectoral and socio-economic trends and emerging pressures, legal and transboundary issues, and governance aspects. The assessment uses existing information by organizing them in a comparable way in order to carry out a previous analysis on the main driver and issues that need to be considered for future MSP processes. The IA is based mainly on desk-based reviews, in order to build a shared synthetic view on the Western Mediterranean region, identifying key issues (main activities and priority conservation issues) and data gaps that are synthesized in the following report.peer-reviewe

Characterization of Porphyrin-Co(III)-'Nitrene Radical' Species Relevant in Catalytic Nitrene Transfer Reactions

To fully characterize the Co-III-'nitrene radical' species that are proposed as intermediates in nitrene transfer reactions mediated by cobalt(II) porphyrins, different combinations of cobalt(II) complexes of porphyrins and nitrene transfer reagents were combined, and the generated species were studied using EPR, UV-vis, IR, VCD, UHR-ESI-MS, and XANES/XAFS measurements. Reactions of cobalt(II) porphyrins 1(P1) (P1 = meso-tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP)) and 1(P2) (P2 = 3,5-Di(t)Bu-ChenPhyrin) with organic azides 2(Ns) (NsN(3)), 2(Ts) (TsN3), and 2(Troc) (TrocN(3)) led to the formation of mono-nitrene species 3(Ns)(P1), 3(Ts)(P2), and 3(Troc)(P2), respectively, which are best described as [Co-III(por)(NR ''(center dot-))] nitrene radicals (imidyl radicals) resulting from single electron transfer from the cobalt(II) porphyrin to the 'nitrene' moiety (Ns: R '' = -SO2-p-C6H5NO2; Ts: R '' = -SO2C6H6; Troc: R '' = -C(O)OCH2CCl3). Remarkably, the reaction of 1(P1) with N-nosyl iminoiodane (PhI=NNs) 4(Ns) led to the formation of a bis-nitrene species 5(Ns)(P1). This species is best described as a triple-radical complex [(por ''(center dot-))Co-III(NR ''(center dot-))(2)] containing three ligand-centered unpaired electrons: two nitrene radicals (NR?(-)) and one oxidized porphyrin radical (por(center dot-)). Thus, the formation of the second nitrene radical involves another intramolecular one-electron transfer to the "nitrene" moiety, but now from the porphyrin ring instead of the metal center. Interestingly, this bis-nitrene species is observed only on reacting 4(Ns) with 1(P1). Reaction of the more bulky 1(P2) with 4(Ns) results again in formation of mainly mono-nitrene species 3(Ns)(P2) according to EPR and ESI-MS spectroscopic studies. The mono- and bis-nitrene species were initially expected to be five- and six-coordinate species, respectively, but XANES data revealed that both mono- and bis-nitrene species are six-coordinate Oh species. The nature of the sixth ligand bound to cobalt(III) in the mono-nitrene case remains elusive, but some plausible candidates are NH3, NH2-, NsNH(-), and OH-; NsNH(-) being the most plausible. Conversion of mono-nitrene species 3(Ns)(P1) into bis-nitrene species 5(Ns)(P1) upon reaction with 4(Ns) was demonstrated. Solutions containing 3(Ns)(P1) and 5(Ns)(P1) proved to be still active in catalytic aziridination of styrene, consistent with their proposed key involvement in nitrene transfer reactions mediated by cobalt(II) porphyrins