Mediterranean SOS launches 2014 campaign

The villainous plastic bag and its many dangers for marine life was the focus of a press conference held by the non-governmental Greek environmental group Mediterranean SOS Network to launch its annual cleanup campaign for Greek seas in 2014.

The yearly "Clean the Mediterranean" campaign is now in its 19th year.

In a Patras University analysis, plastic bags were the most prominent form of litter found in Greek waters and coasts. Plastic items and aluminum canisters amount to approximately 50% of Greek waste. Additional studies have determined that plastic generated 83% of Greek floating debris.

Disposable plastic bags are a major problem for the marine environment. Greece is one of the few countries of the European Union that has not taken any legislative measures to stop this method for transporting foods," said MEDSOS Network president Evangelos Koukiasas.

Maria Luisa Silva Mejias, coordinator of the Mediterranean Action Plan of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP/MAP), stressed that the use of plastic bags was a major problem and caused the deaths of at least one million birds and 100,000 marine mammals each year.

The 2014 campaign aims to highlight the risks of using plastic bags and will include organised cleaning of beaches, sea bottoms and other natural areas by volunteers. These will start on May 1 and continue until June 30, with action harmonised on a European level in recognition of the seriousness of the problem.

The press conference was also addressed by the environment ministry special secretary for waters, Maria Hatzigianni, who said that Greece hoped to receive 400 blue flags for its beaches this year.

The programme is being held under the auspices of UNEP/MAP and is being implemented with the scientific support of the Marine Geology and Natural Oceanography Laboratory of the Patras University geology department.