After recent demonstrations that brought together thousands of young people across the country, under the slogan #fazpeloclima, there now is a new opportunity actively to participate in the conservation of nature through the, ‘Campaign for a Ria Formosa free of plastic.’
The European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA) organises a worldwide competition every year to fund relevant projects that promote biodiversity, while contributing to preserving quality natural spaces for local people and visitors.
In 2019, one of the five pre-selected projects in the ‘Oceans’ category is Portuguese and was put forward by a small Algarve association that now is appealing for votes.
The Association for the Study and Conservation of Oceans (AECO) believes that its selection already has helped the cause because it brings visibility to the Ria Formosa estuary, the Algarve and Portugal generally.
The campaigners say that, “We carry out clean-up activities on the barrier islands every year. With the tourist pressure and other commercial activities taking place here, constant intervention is needed.
“This year will be no exception, regardless of the outcome of this vote. Our goal in participating in this contest was to extend the clean-up that will happen in July, both on land and at sea. With this funding we also can do an underwater clean-up. We need professional divers to remove old anchors, old fishing gear or other debris that has accumulated inside the Ria Formosa estuary.
“Then, we want to take advantage of the technical support of the University of Algarve, to monitor and analyse the seahorse community that unfortunately seems to be in sharp decline."
The public can support this project and vote through the following link:
http://www.outdoorconservation.eu/project-voting-category.cfm?catid=3
Campaign for a plastic free Ria Formosa, Portugal
Website: http://www.a-eco.org
Ria Formosa is an extensive 18,000 hectare lagoon system with sandflats, mudflats and saltmarshes, protected from open sea by a long, thin belt of sand-dunes called barrier islands. The 5 barrier islands and 2 peninsulas are separated by 6 inlets connecting the lagoon to the sea. This is an important area for wildlife, particularly birds, indigenous plants, seahorses and fish.
Since rubbish produced by residents and the increasing numbers of tourists is a serious threat, our project focus on the conservation of the shoreline, protecting marine animals and preserving the environment for nature lovers, water sports enthusiasts and hikers. EOCA funds will expand the annual clean-up to 11km by adding an underwater clean-up.
Funding will also enable an awareness campaign to tackle the problem at its source, targeting non-sustainable behaviours such as plastic consumption and littering. To engage tourists, residents, fishermen and students there will be photographic exhibitions in the main cities of Olhão and Faro, art installations made with the rubbish collected, in-store communications in selected supermarkets and shops as well as a digital campaign to broaden the campaign’s impact.
