BEACH CLEAN CAMPAIGN

Activity 2.5.3: In each pilot area, some touristic facilities and main beach resorts will host a “zero waste campaign*”.

A “zero waste Decalogue*” will be affixed in the main touristic places and an information campaign will be implemented during the touristic season, together with a survey about habits of use and about litter awareness.

Periodically, every month, each local promoter will monitor the wastes management
in each pilot beach and at the end of the summer they will make the survey again.

* note well: the name of the campaign will be converted in “BEach CLEAN”.

Foreword

The problem of the beach litter, whether it is related to beached or abandoned waste during the stay on the beach, turns into an environmental emergency during the summer season when the beaches are affected by all the anthropogenic impact related to beach tourism.

The Mediterranean sea is one of the 25 global biodiversity hotspots, hosting more than 17000 different species. It is recognise as one of the basin the most affected by marine litter in the word: the densely populated coastlines, the highly developed tourism and maritime traffic are of major concern. The land-based activities are the main sources of marine litter: recreational/touristic activities (40-50%) that increases during and after touristic season, household related waste (40%).

In this context, a conscious tourist/citizen informed on good practices and a system of tourist facilities and resorts, aware on a correct waste management (especially regarding single use plastic) can make the difference in terms of non-abandonment, collection and cleaning of the beach.

For this reason, in each pilot area, the main seaside resorts will host a “BEach CLEAN campaign” aimed at raising awareness among both users of the beaches and stimulating good practices among sea operators with particular attention to those ones working on the beach.

  1. Selection of the campaign intervention area

Each partner will be given the task of identifying a “case study shoreline” within its pilot area where to develop the campaign, taking into account the following criteria:

  1. area characterized by a concentration of touristic facilities with the aim of ensuring a greater effectiveness of the action in the limited time span of the summer season;
  • the beach facilities are inserted in an urbanized context, in order to maximize in terms of anthropogenic impact already connected to a “stressed” system and, at the same time, limit distortions due to the different management of waste in decentralized areas and which therefore could undergo different types of collection and delivery of waste due to the operator’s difficulties.
  • Targets, timing and communication

The “BEach CLEAN campaign” aims to involve:

  1. citizens and tourists;
  2. beach operators and resorts.

In 2020, this campaign will start the 1st of July and will end the 30th of September. In 2021 and 2022 the period could change.

The launch of the campaign will be accompanied by a press release in English, then translated into Italian and French and disseminated both nationally – in the 3 countries involved in the project (Italy, Lebanon and Tunisia) – and locally, in the individual pilot areas.

The press release will be enriched with both local and national citations. The Italian, Lebanese and Tunisian ENI CBC Med delegations will be informed and invited to comment on the launch of the campaign in their respective press releases.

The Decalogue will be disseminated online, in blogs, newsletters and websites interested in the topic of the marine litter and on social media (both official and partner). Partners will be invited to disseminate news on the campaign via official communication channels to launch the Decalogue and the link to the questionnaires.

A video on the best practices related to the Decalogue will be released.

At the end of the campaign, the results obtained will be communicated through a new press release on both a national and local basis.

  • Actions

The campaign will develop through the 3 macro actions that will develop in the 2020-2022 period.

  1. “BEach CLEAN Decalogue”

Target: beach operators, beach resorts, tourist facilities, citizens, tourists.

The “BEach CLEAN Decalogue” will be the main information and awareness tool for citizens and tourists: a vademecum of daily good practices to gain awareness on the issues connected with waste and the positive effects that simple behaviours can have on the environment, from the point of view of both protection of coastal ecosystems and health itself.

  • The Decalogue will be distributed in the form of a 35×50 cm poster at the tourist offices and seaside resorts that will join the campaign on the coast identified as a case study.
  • The 10 points are the same for all the pilot areas: they are general good practices valid for all the countries. The poster will be provide in English and in the local language.
  • The facilities that will join the campaign will have to prove their adhesion posting a picture of the affixed poster and tagging #GOMED #WeAreAllMed.

A Qr-code will be put on the poster for monitoring the awareness of citizens/tourists and usage habits towards the survey in point B) below.

The information campaign will develop in the three-year period 2020-2021-2022 with distribution of the material at the beginning of the season.

This campaign proposes two different questionnaires focused on the two different targets: one is addressed to citizens and tourists while the second to touristic operators.

The first questionnaire is a communication tool, to increase people’s awareness on the problem of waste management on beaches, to know their point of view and to contextualize the results of the second questionnaire.

The second questionnaire is an evaluation of the campaign. In fact, it will be proposed at the beginning and end of the summer season to understand if there have been changes and if the campaign has had positive effects or not.

If possible, the answers of the two questionnaires from the same pilot area will be crossed to compare the two points of view (tourists/citizens and touristic operators) regarding waste management on the same beaches, to understand the perception of tourists regarding the actions taken by the operators.

B) Survey on awareness and habits on  waste

Target: citizens and tourists.

This intervention – which will be developed in the selected seaside resort referred to point 1) – aims to encourage the active involvement of tourists and/or residents who use the beach with a simple survey to verify their perception towards the issue of waste, their habits and the degree of satisfaction of the waste management system offered by the territory. For this year (2020) some questions regarding the COVID19 emergency are present.

The questionnaire will be available by means of the Qr-code on the Decalogue referred to in point A) above and in the main social media.

The main characteristics of the questionnaire are shown:

  1. The questionnaire will be created through a web tool that allows the direct collection of the answers;
  2. the questionnaire will be submitted in the months of July, August and September with a minimum of 10 questionnaires collected per month per pilot area. The questionnaires received through the Qr-code tool on the information material also contribute to the calculation;
  3. the questionnaire will be anonymous. We will asked the city of residence, gender and age group. At the end of the questionnaire, there are the link of the official websites for more information.

C) Actions with beach operators

Target: beach operators, beach resorts, tourist facilities.

“BEach CLEAN campaign” provides for the active involvement of some resorts which, by joining the campaign, will receive information and awareness-raising materials to be distributed to their customers and will participate in a survey aimed at verifying their internal waste management.

This action foresees:

  1. Distribution of the following information material:
  2. “BEach CLEAN poster” with tips for eco-bather (2020, 2021, 2022)
  3. Cards with tips for eco-bather to be distributed at the beach resorts to be hung on umbrellas. This action is envisaged from next year (2021, 2022).
  4. Kit for the separate collection from umbrella consisting of 3 micro bags for the collection of the multi-material fraction, paper, undifferentiated. The bather will then have to correctly dispose of the waste at the ecological oases of the resort and return the kit to the lifeguard. Through the questionnaire proposed to touristic operators (point 2)) at the end of the summer season, the impacts of this action will be monitored to understand if bathers liked the kit and if an improvement was observed in the separate collection made by customers. This action is envisaged from next year (2021, 2022).
  • A survey on the environmental parameters of the resort at the start and at the end of the season (2020, 2021, 2022). The survey could be distribute both in person or by e-mail.
  • A sticker will be given to the structures participating in the campaign. This action is envisaged from next year (2021, 2022).

It should be noted that this is not a registered trademark of environmental quality, but only a certificate of adherence to the campaign that wants to enhance and encourage the good practices activated by the seaside operator to make waste management more efficient and reduce internal production itself.

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