The Commonwealth of Municipalities of the Western Costa del Sol presented this Friday the shoreline cleaning servicewhich began on June 1 and will continue until September 15 with a total of 14 boats and a cost of €545,710.00as announced by the president of the supra-municipal institution, José Antonio Mena.
This has been highlighted by the regional representative in an act that has been held in Marbella, where he has been accompanied by the mayor of the townAngeles Munoz.
Mena explained that “the service consists of commissioning of 4 coastal vessels and 10 beach for the collection of floating and/or semi-submerged solids, as well as hydrocarbons and oilseeds along the coast of the municipalities of Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Fuengirola, Mijas, Marbella, Estepona and Casares and Manilva”. The cost of the service, added the president, is 545,710.00 euros.
the boats They work between 08:00 and 16:00 from Monday to Friday. and from 08:00 to 18:00 on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays when there is a greater influx of people.
Regarding the characteristics of the boats, there are two types such as those that operate on the coast, called ‘pelican’, and they fish them near the shore, called “gabinas”. As for the ships to operate in coastal watersits priority area of action corresponds to those located from the coastline, which have to work mainly in the potentially most conflictive areas such as the vicinity of the port, submarine outfalls, collectors, submarine discharge pipes or torrent mouths.
The main function of these boats is the prevention of pollution episodes in the bathing areas and collection of floating solids, fats, and other waste in open sea waters up to 6 miles away from the coast, he has specified.
The technical features of the boats must allow good seaworthiness and develop, as a priority, functions such as aspiration and automatic collection of floating solids or removal, suction and recovery of hydrocarbon stains, foams, creams, etc. with a storage capacity of a minimum of 5 cubic meters; the dispersion of stains in the water with oxygenation systems and the cleaning of docks and breakwaters.
Another characteristic of these boats is their motorization, which “must be made with low consumption engineswith an exhaustive level of gases within the limits of the most demanding regulations that do not release oils or hydrocarbons into the sea, and provided with the corresponding exhaust silencers, installed in acoustically isolated chambers”.
As for the boats to operate on the beachesMena has pointed out that they meet the necessary technical features to operate in good maneuverability conditions in confined spaces, guarantee the safety of bathers and have access to sheltered coves and jetty and jetty areas.
His priority work is floating solids collection, so they carry out the removal and storage of the waste collected from the water by means of an automated central control, and have sufficient autonomy to work throughout the working day, including trips to the base port. the boats They will be equipped with a mobile phone, GPS and an alert system. for bathers.
Like those on the coast, “they are equipped with low consumption motorizationwith a gas outlet level within the limits of the most demanding regulations, and that they do not release oils or hydrocarbons into the sea”.