21/07/2002 00:00
TW
0

The Coastal Authority, which is dependant on the central ministry of the environment, has admitted that the state of the water at Cala Millor beach, which looks dirty, is due to the regeneration. More than 22'000 cubic metres of sand were dumped on the beach in May, to restore it after the November storms, which played havoc with many beaches on the island. Last week, officials from the Coastal Authority went to Cala Millor to inspect the site and analyse the water, following an avalanche of complaints. They found that the water was cloudy. A spokesman said that when a beach is regenerated, particles of mud remain in suspension and this makes the water cloudy. However, he said that this problem would be solved “within a few days” through the action of the waves. But the hoteliers are not too happy about the situation. Antoni Roig, the chairman of the local hoteliers association, said that he and other members had spoken to the tourist guides who had passed on complaints from visitors. He said that the tourists are not so worried about the water being cloudy, but they are complaining about the amount of plastic and other rubbish in the sea. He said that they planned to do what they could to remedy the situation. Roig said that they would seek a meeting with the director of the coastal authority or the Balearic government to discuss the problem. He added that the tourist season was going badly enough without this additional problem, and said “I should hate to think what would have happened if the beach hadn't been regenerated.” The local environment ministry, headed by Margalida Rosselló of Els Verds (The Greens) was opposed to the central ministry's regeneration of the beaches, claiming that it was better for them to recover naturally. But hoteliers, fearing for the tourist season, brought pressure to bear for artificial regeneration to take place, alleging that they could not wait for nature to take its course.