Workers from the Beaches department are busy removing the invasive seaweed that is appearing naturally along the whole Málaga coastline.
The cause of this problem is the Asian seaweed ‘Rugulopterix okamurae’, which is spreading across the Strait of Gibraltar, causing clear harm to the fishing, tourism and environmental sectors because of its rapid spread and its ability to form a brown blanket that suffocates the marine ecosystem.
Despite this being a fight against nature itself, Eva Galindo, councillor for Beaches, said: «we are aware that removing seaweed is a futile fight when it comes to eradicating it, but at least we are trying to keep our coastline in the best possible condition so that residents can enjoy a swim without any problems», she added.
The councillor herself has seen how this work is often ineffective because the seaweed keeps coming back again and again.
Given the problem, the Town Hall hopes that a state-wide plan will be put in place to help clear our coasts of this seaweed, both in its collection and its removal.
