Initiative to take place in five boroughs

Zoomarine theme park in Guia is still seeking volunteers for ‘Operation Clean Beach’ (Operação Praia Limpa), a beach clean-up initiative taking place in five Algarve boroughs on Sunday, May 8 between 9.30am and 12 noon.

The event is held every year and aims to remove as much rubbish as possible from selected beaches.

This year, the event will take place in a record five boroughs – Silves, Albufeira, Lagoa, Loulé and Faro – in a bid to expand its reach and impact.

Says the theme park, signing up is free and takes “just one minute”. Registrations will remain open until Friday, May 6.

Launched in 2017, the event is part of Zoomarine’s ‘Together We Protect’ environmental responsibility initiative and aims to remove rubbish of human origin along several kilometres of coastline, “which should never be found on our beaches”.

“Although these beaches are on lists of the cleanest beaches in the world, our aim is to make Silves, Albufeira, Lagoa, Loulé and Faro even cleaner from plastic, cigarette butts, cans, fishing gear, boat remains, and discarded home appliances,” the theme park says.

The event has several high-profile partners, including regional waste management company Algar, University of Algarve, Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), Institute of Nature and Forest Conservation (ICNF), Algarve Tourism Board (RTA), regional water company Águas do Algarve, British tea brand Lipton, Vila Vita Parc Resort, Centro Europe Direct Algarve and tour operator Olimar Reisen.

To register: Operação Praia Limpa – Praia Limpa (zoomarine.pt)