Spain warning to holidaymakers as ‘black flag’ beaches named in holiday hotspots

British holidaymakers heading to Spain have been warned of nearly 50 ‘black flag’ beaches across the country. Coastal locations in holiday hotspot Canary Islands feature in the list, along with beaches in Malaga, Barcelona and and the Costa Brava (Girona).

A new report by Spanish environmental campaign group Ecologists in Action has highlighted the worst offencers. After inspecting more than 8,000km of coastline the group dished out 48 black flags.

It warned that there "could be many more flags that we award year after year" and includes the the most serious environmental conditions on the Spanish coast. Chemical pollution, marine waste, over-development and sewage discharges were just some of the issues highlighted in the report, the Liverpool Echo reports.

READ MORE: UK tourists hiring a car in Spain issued warning and urged to take action when travelling

A spokesperson for Ecologists in Action said that "touristification and urbanisation of our coastline" was one of the biggest problems Spain's coastline faced. A spokesperson said: "A problem that especially affects the Canary Islands, whose population is organizing, under the cry of “The Canary Islands have a limit”, to reject the numerous attacks and threats that endanger the conservation of these islands and the future of future generations.

"The metabolism of tourist activity in the Canary Islands is highly intensive in the requirement of large quantities of materials and energy that are not available, and in turn generates enormous quantities of waste and pollutants that are incapable of being assimilated by the territory itself. The footprint ecological situation of the Canary Islands corresponds to that of a territory 27 times larger. In other words, we need a territory 27 times larger to satisfy all the demands of the economic model and development of the archipelago."

Another problem the report highlighted is the "high concentration of plastics". The group issued a warning over the dumping of plastic pellets affecting the Galician coast at the beginning of the year.

A spokesperson said: "Far from being an exclusively Galician problem, high plastic pollution reaches the beaches of the Costa Dorada, almost more plastic than sandy, affected by the great environmental problem derived from the discharge of pellets from the Camp de Tarragona petrochemical complex."

These are the 48 'black flag' beaches in Spain

1. La Farella, Girona, Catalonia

2. Various beaches on the Costa Brava, Girona, Catalonia

3. Comarca del Maresme, Barcelona, Catalonia

4. Sant Adrià del Besò, Barcelona, Catalonia

5. Camino de Ronda, Tarragona, Catalonia

6. Playa de la Pineda, Costa Dorada, Tarragona, Catalonia

7. Playa de L'Estany-Capicorb, Castellon, Valencia region

8. Playa de Burriana, Castellon, Valencia region

9. Beaches at the Parque Natural de l'Albufera, Valencia, Valencia region

10. Puerto de Valencia, Valencia, Valencia region

11. Barranco y playa del Amerador, Alacant, Valencia region

12. Playas de Cap l'horta, Albufera, Postiguet and San Gabriel, Alacant, Valencia region

13. Mar Menor, Murcia region

14. Portman Bay and Sierra Minera, Murcia region

15. Playa Quitapellejos-Palomares, Almeria, Andalucia

16. Playa de 'El Lancón' en Carboneras, Almeria, Andalucia

17. Playa de Castell de Ferro, Granada, Andalucia

18. Playa Granada y Poniente, Granada, Andalucia

19. Playas de Malaga, Malaga, Andalucia

20. Coast of Malaga, Malaga, Andalucia

21. Tarifa, Cadiz, Andalucia

22. Costa de Trafalgar, Cadiz, Andalucia

23. Huelva river, Huelva, Andalucia

24. El Portil, Huelva, Andalucia

25. Aldán river, Concello de Cangas, Pontevedra, Galicia

26. Arousa river and Pontevedra river, Pontevedra, Galicia

27. Minera de Galicia, A Coruna, Galicia

28. Pereiro river and Ramisqueira river, A Coruna, Galicia

29. Alcoa pond, Lugo, Galicia

30. Galician coast, Lugo, Galicia

31. Port of Figueres, Asturies

32. Villaviciosa, Asturies

33. Playa de Usgo, Cantabria

34. San Román de la Llanilla, Cantabria

35. Lamiako marsh area, Bizkaia, Basque Country

36. Gernika and Murueta, Bizkaia, Basque Country

37. Santa Clara Island, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country

38. La Concha Island, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country

39. Cala Xarraca, Ibiza, Balearic Islands

40. Playa de Talamanca, Ibiza, Balearic Islands

41. Port of Melilla, Melilla

42. Melilla Bay, Melilla

43. Monte Hacho, Ceuta

44. Playa de Desnarigado, Ceuta

45. Playa Blanca, Las Palmas, Lanzarote, Canary Islands=

46. Corralejo Dunes, Las Palmas, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

47. La Tejita Beach (Granadilla), Puertito de Armeñime (Adeje), Tenerife, Canary Islands

48. Northwest coastline of Tenerife, Canary Islands

You can read the full report here.

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