Volunteers once again give up their time to remove wet wipes after the storm

Wednesday 15th February 2023
Mike Smith with Álvaro Monfort

Ragged remains of wet wipes dotting the coast of Xàbia after a storm is a never ending story but perhaps one that is deserved for continuing to allow this type of hygienic products to reach the sea. Nature is wise and, although generous, it knows when to say “enough”.

Last Sunday, the group of volunteers from Jávea te quiero limpia collected 50 kilos of of wet wipes and other plastic waste from the coast of Xàbia. Armed with bags, gloves, comfortable shoes and equipment to pick up rubbish in the best of cases, this group of altruistic residents know very well what is the way to proceed after a strong swell caused by recent storms.

They are moved by their desire to contribute to keeping the environment that brings them so much joy. But they are also critical of the repetitiveness of the situation and on their social networks, reporting on their work, they said that “As long as the authorities do not face the problem and tackle it, Xàbia will have to turn yellow with shame because of the dirt on its coasts that does little to support the tourist promotion that is done”.

Throwing wipes down the drain is a very harmful practice that is difficult for public authorities to control as it occurs in the privacy of everyday life. There is an urgent need for greater awareness in this regard because they end up clogging the pipes and, in the case of Xàbia, being spit out into the sea. When this happens, it is known that it occurs because of an opening in the municipal sewage system that drains near the sea. The improvement of the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) is essential to put an end to it.

Recently, Ecologistes en Acció denounced that this is due to the incapacity of the local sewage system and pointed to the existence of a pipe discharging in front of the mouth of the Gorgos river, close to the Benissero beach (which would explain why the Primer Montañar is dotted with wipes after each storm) and the well-known one located 200 meters from Arenal beach in which the council claims to be working after a complex summer.

The environmental action group claims that the Xàbia sewerage network is “third world” since it combines rainwater and wastewater and does not have a storm tank that prevents the WWTP from collapsing when it rains heavily and resulting in these discharges. They recognize that the solution involves a “multimillion-euro investment in both the sewage network and the WWTP”.

Original Article: Vecinos voluntarios de Xàbia vuelven a enfrentarse a los vertidos de toallitas tras el temporal