Environment: in Les Sables-d’Olonne, annual beach cleaning operations

Every year, after the high tides, a small army of cleaners lands on the beaches of Sables-d’Olonne, in Vendée. The site, classified zone Nature 2000, is fragile: no mechanical device can access it. “I do it every year, to raise awareness for my son”, explains one of the cleaners present for the annual operation, the weekend of March 19-20.

On the beaches, it is difficult to distinguish microplastics, small translucent beads that are a real poison. “It really comes, I think, from transport, when there are cargo containers that fall into the sea during storms”, explains Donatien Chereauelected delegate for the coast and the marshes of Sables-d’Olonne. In the end, 40 kilos of micro-waste and more than a ton of wood were collected during this beach cleaning operation. A collection that will be fully recycled.