Zero Beach pilot projects
Zero Beach is a project run by the NGO Rezero and the association eco-union to promote zero waste strategies on the beaches of the Catalonia region. In the summer of 2019, Rezero and eco-union, in collaboration with the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona and the municipalities of Castelldefels, El Prat de Llobregat and Gavà, carried out pilot studies to reduce pollution on beaches from cigarette butts and plastic containers:
- Participating beaches established a smoke-free area for one week. Information signs and ashtrays were installed around info points to encourage citizen participation.
- Beach users were encouraged to return beverage containers to the info point, receiving EUR 0.05 for each container returned.
- Information panels were displayed on participating beaches, illustrating the environmental impact of the most common single-use items found on beaches, and explaining existing alternatives.
The first two studies were only conducted during summer 2019 but the information panels are permanent. Some municipalities wanted to continue awareness campaigns and smoke-free areas for summer 2020, but these initiatives were halted due to the Covid-19 crisis.
