More than a hundred young people took part in a beach clean-up and environmental awareness event held at Benajarafe beach in Vélez-Málaga on ... Friday 9 October, as part of the European #EUBeachCleanUp campaign. The event was organised by the Europe Direct offices of Malaga and Cordoba, in collaboration with Vélez-Málaga town hall, according to a statement.
The participants, from secondary schools in Vélez-Málaga and Cordoba, collected a total of 65 kilos of rubbish from the coastline. Once the cleanup was complete, the materials were weighed and sorted according to type and origin, so that the activity was not limited solely to cleaning the beach, but also served to identify what sort of rubbish ends up accumulating on the coast.
Councillor European Resources, Jesús María Claros, presented the initiative alongside the councillor for beaches, David Vílches. Claros highlighted the educational aspect of the event and pointed out that much of the waste that ends up in the sea originates far from the coast. “Marine pollution begins on land, which is why environmental education is the primary tool for protecting our coastline,” he said.
Around a hundred students collected 65 kilos of rubbish in Benajarafe and took part in workshops on marine and coastal pollution
The councillor highlighted the importance of the pupils' involvement. “The fact that they are the ones leading this initiative is the best guarantee that our commitment to our coastlines has a future,” said Claros.
The day’s programme also included an awareness-raising workshop on the value of the coastal environment, the impact of litter on coastal ecosystems and the importance of reducing the amount of rubbish generated. The European campaign highlights that clean-up initiatives also serve an educational purpose and aim to change habits, going beyond the one-off removal of litter.
85 per cent are plastics
In this year’s edition of #EUBeachCleanUp, the European Commission points out that around 80 per cent of waste that ends up in the sea comes from land and that approximately 85 per cent of this litter is plastic. The initiative takes place internationally between June and October and combines litter picks with awareness-raising and educational activities.
The event in Benajarafe marks the fourth consecutive year in which Europe Direct Málaga has organised a day of this kind in the province. Previous cleanups have taken place in Torrox, Algarrobo and Rincón de la Victoria, which has enabled the campaign to be gradually rolled out to different coastal towns in Malaga.
Europe Direct Málaga is holding this campaign in the province for the fourth year running, following previous events in Torrox, Algarrobo and Rincón
At the last event, held in La Cala del Moral, participants collected around 35 kilos of rubbish. The items found included packaging, plastic bottles, cigarette ends, fishing gear and small pieces of plastic, which is particularly difficult to remove once it has broken down into smaller particles.
Every year, the #EUBeachCleanUp campaign brings together initiatives promoted by EU institutions, Europe Direct centres, public authorities, social organisations and environmental groups. In Benajarafe, the collection of 65 kilos of rubbish on Friday also served to highlight a problem that goes beyond the one-off beach clean-up itself: the need to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in the sea and to strengthen environmental education from an early age.