Beaches black and blue green group flags up in Almeria.

Almeria Province recently welcomed the news it was being awarded 16 European Union Blue Flags for the quality of its beaches. But now Almeria beaches have been ‘awarded’ 29 black flags by Spanish environmental group Ecologistas en Accion (EEA). The black flag is the group’s antithesis of the European Blue Flag.

Beaches are awarded the distinctive yet undesirable symbol by the environmentalists in response to the ‘vast over-development in the region.’ The main culprit in Almeria Province is Almeria City with 7 black flags. It is followed by Carboneras, Nijar and Pulpi with four each.

Roquetas de Mar has three, and El Ejido two, while Vera, Cuevas, Mojacar (Playa Macenas), Garrucha (Port) and Adra have been given one black flag each. EEA has also listed 17 black spots flagged as problem zones, ten more than last summer.

Almeria has obtained almost half (29) of Andalucia’s 64 black flags, and six more than last year. A distant second was Cadiz which received 17 black flags followed by Malaga (9), Huelva (6), and Granada (3).