In 2016, my husband Philipp, who runs LifeXperiences, an events management company, was asked to organise a big event in Ibiza, with 1,000 people over five days, and on the logistics sheet was the task to buy 25,000 plastic bottles of water! It was at that moment he said, “We cannot do this, there must be another way!” That is when the idea was born: let's set up water stations, give people bottles they can refill, and we won't have to buy all those plastic water bottles. After the Ibiza event, the company decided that from that moment on, they were going to do this for all events, and if it could be done for all events, it could be done for the whole island.
Initially, our aim was to have a fountain in the city of Palma. The project developed quickly. I'd just produced a film called Out of Plastic, which tells the story of plastic in the Balearic Islands. This gave me an incredible opportunity to meet the people involved in the local community. We struck a deal with Emaya, who thereafter bought 60 fountains for the city of Palma. Many bars, restaurants and yoga studios have set up refill points. We have a downloadable application with all the refill points and we see a lot of people with their own reusable water bottles. So there's been a change: people have become aware of the need to reduce plastic waste. Since it was set up, the network of fountains has prevented the consumption of more than 15 million plastic bottles!
As a general rule, we recycle around 9% of the plastic we consume. 12% is incinerated and burnt to produce energy. The rest disappears into landfill, breaks down into microplastics and is dumped into the sea. The Mediterranean is one of the most polluted seas in the world. The level of pollution is so extreme that, in my opinion, the only real way to solve the problem is at its source: to stop producing plastic for single use consumption.
But plastic is just a drop in the ocean. There's also the way we manage our waste water, the way we manage the impact of cruise ships, yachting and the transportation industry, and our response to the changing climate... I think what's important when looking at environmental issues is to broaden our field of vision.
A huge deterioration in ecosystems. In recent years, the Posidonia has suffered greatly because of the boats that come to anchor and tear up the Posidonia. Water quality, with sewage discharges, is also a major problem.
One of the initiatives within the Cleanwave Foundation, is the MedGardens project, which sets out to restore marine ecosystems, focusing on shallow Mediterranean underwater forests. We do this through both passive and active restoration. Passive being protecting existing Posidonia meadows, by preventing external impacts that may damage the ecosystem, such as boat anchoring, pollution or numbers of people who unintentionally impact the area. Active restoration refers to active transplanting and nursing the growth of Posidonia and Cystoseira.
Posidonia is a seagrass - she is the “goddess” of the Mediterranean. Posidonia meadows act as a nursery for 80% of all the species in the Mediterranean. Without the Posidonia, large parts of the biodiversity in the Mediterranean would be at risk. Also, Posidonia ensures that we have crystal clear waters, which so often attracts many visitors to these islands, and of course prevents the erosion of our beaches. Also an important reason to preserve Posidonia is that it is an incredibly effective carbon sink. We often tend to criticise the mounds of dead seagrass that build up on our shores, but these too serve to preserve our beaches. Less well known, but equally important is the seaweed Cystoseira. It is an algae that grows on rocks. It provides an ecosystem in which fish and other species can exist and thrive.
We have a 75-hectare site in Portocolom, which is the largest shallow bay area under restoration in Spain, and another 10-hectare site in Sant Elm and in Formentor. Our aim is to expand these existing sites, and to secure a total of 9 sites over the next five years, reaching a total of 1,000 hectares by 2029.
Each of our MedGardens is considered an area under restoration. We work closely with the communities surrounding these areas, and invite them to become part of the restoration efforts. It's not a case of saying ‘it's protected, you cannot come in’, but rather ‘please come and have a look. See what we do, learn from our scientific investigation, learn to appreciate the value of where you are and the marine ecosystem that surrounds you’. This is first and foremost a community initiative. We work closely with the municipalities. We want the yachting and fishing industry to be involved in this area too. We understand that when natural ecosystems thrive, so does the entire community, including the businesses that depend on these natural resources. Our message is, ‘invest in marine restoration, and you will reap the returns both on a social and economic level.’
The main aim of MedGardens is to establish a scalable model of marine stewardship across the Balearic Islands, which can be adapted and expanded across the Mediterranean, strengthening shallow marine habitats needed for biodiversity to thrive, and thereby mitigating the impacts of climate change.
Healthy seas provide marine ecosystem services to businesses and individuals who work by the sea. These could be fisheries or diving companies, Mallorca is home to many businesses that depend on the quality and health of the sea for their success. So protecting the Mediterranean also means protecting people's livelihoods.
Yes. Nothing we do can be long lasting without the awareness and engagement of the community. All three initiatives within the Cleanwave Foundation require community engagement and education. Whether it be reducing waste through the Cleanwave Movement; engaging school children through eco-emotional workshops pioneered by Cleanwave Education; and of course environmental protection,by MedGardens, is understanding that we are all interconnected with the natural world.
Also we have just initiated a program called “Invisible Youth of Mallorca”, which bridges social and environmental issues, catering for youth in Mallorca who are at risk of social exclusion.
For more information visit:
https://www.cleanwavefoundation.org/
