The coastal cleaning service removes almost 30 tonnes of waste from the Balearic coasts

The coastal cleaning service has concluded the 2023 season with 27.81 tonnes of waste removed from the Balearic coasts; by islands, Mallorca heads the waste removal with 16,915 kilos, followed by Menorca with 6,083, Ibiza with 3,714 and Formentera with 1,099.

According to the Department of the Sea and Water Cycle, the coastal cleaning service has concluded the 2023 campaign, which began in June and ended in September, removing a total of 27,812.94 kilos of waste from the Balearic archipelago, equivalent to an average of 195.82 kilos of waste per day.

The joint effort of the 'beach' and 'coastal' vessels, which have worked uninterruptedly for 120 days, has made it possible to carry out the campaign aimed at the prevention and sanitation of bathing waters on the beaches and coves of the Balearic Islands. In terms of geographical distribution, 16,915 kilos of waste were removed in Mallorca, followed by Menorca with 6,083, Ibiza with 3,714 and Formentera with 1,099.

Specifically, beach boats have contributed 20,888 kilos, averaging 138.22 kilos per day, while coastal boats have collected a total of 6,924 kilos, with an average of 57.61 per day.
In Mallorca, the compilation of data by municipalities reveals that Pollença tops the list with 3,227.45 kilos of waste extracted this season. It is followed by Capdepera with 2,324.75 kilos and Alcúdia with 1,928.06. Likewise, Felanitx and Palma also registered significant figures, with 1,498.55 and 1,207.68 kilos collected, respectively.

In Menorca, the collection reached 2,050.20 kilos in Mercadal and 1,717.43 in Mahón. Ciutadella contributed 1,218.90 kilos to the clean-up. In Ibiza, San Josep removed 1,371.48 kilos, while 914.60 kilos were collected in Sant Joan. Formentera contributed with the removal of 1,099.05 kilos.

Among the waste collected, plastic is the main pollutant, accounting for 45.70% of the materials collected. It is followed by wood, with 32.17%, and other materials such as vegetation (7.20%), miscellaneous objects (8.20%), organic matter (5.26%) and oils or hydrocarbons (0.78%). It should be noted that 7.6 tonnes more waste was removed this season than last year.

In addition to the usual clean-up, the brigades responded to 23 warnings, including assistance in cases of fuel spills and the collection of specific waste in specific coves. The 112 and Salvamento Marítimo alerts totalled 17, while the remaining six were issued by institutions and individuals.

The season also saw interventions such as the collection of trees, plastic barrels, sunken boats adrift, dead animals and wrecks. Moreover, during the summer months the presence of the Portuguese Caravel has not been reported, although some jellyfish Pelagia, Rhizostoma and Tuberculata have been collected in bathing areas.