On 18th January 2023, the ceremony for the awarding of the first Blue Flags obtained by Argentinian resorts was held in Mar del Plata. Two Argentinian beaches, namely Balneario San Sebastián (La Perla) and Balneario Mediterraneo (Punta Mogotes Complex), received the Blue Flag award.
“Beaches are normally seen as recreational environments, but they are also natural ecosystems susceptible to degradation, and therefore it is necessary to take measures for their conservation and sustainable use. Beaches are coastal-marine interface environments. They are fragile and dynamic and are home to an enormous biodiversity. From the National Ministry of Environment, we encourage actions for education, conservation and sustainable use of these ecosystems.”
- Gabriela Gonzalez Trilla, National Director of Environmental Management of Water and Aquatic Ecosystems at the Argentinian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development
This achievement comes as a result of efforts and dedication by the local authorities, which first implemented a submarine outfall in Mar del Plata in 2014 and later completed the construction of a wastewater treatment plant in 2018, ensuring that Mar del Plata's beaches comply with the same parameters required by the European Union for recreational waters in terms of sanitation and water quality.
Mar del Plata was chosen as the first Municipality to implement in its resorts the 33 Blue Flag criteria for beaches as a result of a feasibility study conducted in 2018. The criteria include requirements in the fields of environmental education and information, water quality, environmental management, as well as safety and services.
Present at the National Awarding ceremony of season 2022/2023 were Francesca Abeltino - Executive Director of FEE Argentina, Bernardo Martin - President of Emtur of Mar del Plata, Fernando Maurade - Administrator of Punta Mogotes Complex, Marcelo Scagliola - Quality Manager of OSSE.
During the ceremony, Hernán Roitman, - National Director of Quality in Tourism Innovation of the National Ministry of Tourism and Sports, addressed the relevance of the Blue Flag programme for the development of the tourism sector in Argentina:
“Tourism Sustainability is one of the pillars of the policies of the Ministry of Tourism, so we support all initiatives that improve the environmental and social standards of the sector. The collaboration between Blue Flag and the Guidelines for Sustainable Tourism is materialized with this distinction and initiates a joint work to have environmentally sustainable beaches and resorts.”