Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
BEACHES in ‘upmarket’ Marbella have lost 20% of their sand during the latest storms – which have also dumped an invasive algae on the resort’s shores.
Diego Lopez, City Councillor for Environment, Beaches and Ports, confirmed the damage this week.
He said in a statement: “Fontanilla beach is the hardest hit… erosion there has caused the disappearance of some 10,000 cubic metres of sand.
The City Council is analyzing the situation and examining urgent measures to recover our coast.
He called on government departments ‘to carry out immediate actions to guarantee the regeneration of the beaches and the repair of the affected facilities.’
Meanwhile, in the British expat haven of Nueva Andalucia, Lopez said the beach ‘has suffered a significant loss of sand to which is added the arrival of invasive algae that the storm itself has deposited.’
Fontanilla beach, among the most popular for tourists, now has a ‘significant’ drop that makes accessing the water difficult, said Lopez.
Venus beach has also experienced a ‘significant reduction in its surface area’, as has El Cable beach.
Lopez stated that in Cabopino – a beach of great popularity – “the situation is particularly concerning due to the significant shrinkage in the width.”
The councillor also said walkways have been damaged, ‘affecting the preparation of facilities for the high season.’
Aemet (the state weather agency) has issued a yellow alert or an orange one for almost the entire south of Andalucia today.
Large swathes of central and northern Spain – plus the western coast of Mallorca – are also under advisory for rain and severe winds which could exceed 90km/hr in some areas.
Although Valencia and the Costa Blanca as a whole have not been placed under an alert, there will be some showers in the region today, especially during the morning and afternoon.
The Costa del Sol and the entire province of Sevilla, Cordoba, western Granada and parts of Cadiz, Huelva and Cadiz are all under a yellow rain warning. Up to 80mm is expected over a period of 12 hours.
Ronda and the coasts of Huelva and Cadiz are on orange alerts, as up to 30mm could fall in an hour.
Weather alerts start at different times depending on the province or zone affected, but are all in effect until 11.59pm.
