Smoking ban
Sections
Highlight
Sections
Highlight
Lorena Cádiz
Benalmádena
Friday, 6 June 2025, 10:44
No more cigarette butts or smoke. The anti-smoking wave is advancing on the beaches of Malaga province and there are now 19 beaches on the Costa del Sol that are considered smoke-free. In order to add a public beach or swimming pool to this network, the relevant local council must take on a number of commitments, with differing degrees of involvement.
The most basic level involves a simple commitment from the local council, aimed at raising awareness and educating its citizens about the harm caused by tobacco use. After the basic level, there's a wide range of stages until reaching the bronze, silver or gold level set by the initiative. Not only is awareness increasing, but there are also councils going one step further: beyond the informative level and directly aiming for a ban.
Benalmádena is an example of this, a municipality which has just joined this network and has declared the well-known cove Playa Bonita a no-smoking beach. This summer, according to councillor Presi Aguilera, signs will be installed in different languages warning that this is a smoke-free beach. Both sunbed rental sites and lifeguard staff will be informed on this so that they can pass on information to beach-goers. In addition, the municipal bylaw regulating the beaches will be modified so that smoking is officially forbidden in the area.
"This is good news for the health of our residents and visitors and it is also good news for our beaches. There is no point in the town hall making an effort to invest in cleaning beaches (which it's already doing) if we continue to litter them with rubbish and cigarette butts," said Aguilera. "Children come to play and they shouldn't find the sand full of cigarette butts," she said.
Playa Bonita in Benalmádena joins Algarrobo beach; La Rada in Estepona; El Faro, San Pedro de Alcántara and Playa de Venus beaches in Marbella; Calahonda, El Bombo and La Cala in Mijas; Cenicero, Ferrara and Morche beaches in Torrox, and Almayate, Benajarafe, Caleta, Lagos, Mezquitilla, Torre del Mar and Valle Nizas in Vélez Málaga.
In most of them it is recommended not to smoke but it is not strictly forbidden.
For example, Mijas town hall, which has established three smoke-free beaches, explains, "The main objective of this initiative is to raise public awareness of the benefits of keeping beaches and swimming pools free of tobacco smoke, as a way of respecting not only the environment but also our own health. It was born with an educational and social awareness-raising purpose." But, beyond that, currently smoking in these areas "does not carry a penalty because that would require changing the municipal ordinance".
The Andalusian network of health services and smoke-free spaces reminds us that cigarette butts are the main source of litter in the world, that they are not biodegradable and take between eight and 12 years to decompose.
"Cigarettes buried in the sand cause pollution. After leaching into the soil and water, the pollution passes into the food chain, producing toxic effects on animals and humans," says the network. It also highlights smoking as the number one public health concern in developed countries.
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Esta funcionalidad es exclusiva para registrados.
Reporta un error en esta noticia
Comentar es una ventaja exclusiva para registrados
¿Ya eres registrado?
Inicia sesiónNecesitas ser suscriptor para poder votar.