It was held in sea of silver the delivery ceremony the first blue flags obtained by Argentine spas. The Blue flag It is the most recognized ecological label in the world, awarded to beaches, spas and sustainable nautical tourism operators. A central aspect of the program is the objective of improving the sustainable management of the structures, monitoring water quality, promoting environmental education activities, and ensuring safety and accessibility.
The program, born in France, this year turns 35 of existence globally and is present in 50 countries in the world. The implementation of the program in Argentina began in 2018 with a feasibility study that chose Mar del Plata as the first Municipality to implement in its spas the 33 standardized criteria that concessionaires wishing to certify the sustainability commitment must meet.
In the ceremony of this 2022/2023 season, the spas received the Blue Flag award San Sebastián (La Perla) and Mediterráneo (Punta Mogotes Complex) being the first to receive this certification in Argentina. The advances that Mar del Plata made in relation to the management of its sewage, the construction of an underwater outfall in 2014, and the start-up of the treatment plant in 2018, allowed the bacteriological indices of bathing water in the beaches have the same parameters required by the European Union for recreational waters and are a strong candidate for recognition.
At the award ceremony that took place on January 18, the Concessionaire responsible for the San Sebastián and Mediterráneo Spas, Pablo Psilaftidis, along with the award from the organization, he received the quality certificate from the “Tourism Sustainability Guidelines” Program of Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Nationsince these guidelines are aligned with the Blue Flag program.
“Beaches are normally seen as recreational environments, but they are also natural ecosystems that can be degraded and, therefore, it is necessary to take measures for their conservation and sustainable use. Beaches are interface marine coastal environments. They are fragile and dynamic and are home to enormous biodiversity. From the Ministry of Environment of the Nation we encourage actions of education, conservation and sustainable employment of these ecosystems”, declared Gabriela Gonzalez Trilla National Director of Environmental Management of Water and Ecosystems.
For his part, Hernan Roitmann, National Director of Tourism Quality and Innovation of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Nation, stated: “Tourism Sustainability is one of the pillars of the Policies of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, that is why we accompany all initiatives that improve environmental standards and social of the sector. The collaboration between blue flag and the Tourism Sustainability Guidelines materializes with this distinction, and begins a joint effort to have environmentally sustainable beaches and spas”.
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