South Africa's coastline sparkles! Twenty local beaches won international recognition at the 2005 Blue Flag Awards, a European-based campaign which measures beaches against strict environmental, tourist and safety standards.  Blue Flag gives local and foreign visitors the knowledge that their beaches are clean, environmentally sound and adhere to international safety and other tourist standards.
When South Africa joined the campaign in 2001 as the first country outside Europe to participate, Blue Flag began to grow into a truly international campaign. Started in France in 1985, the campaign now runs in over 30 countries across Europe, the Caribbean, Canada, Iceland and New Zealand. South Africa and Morocco are the only African countries to have joined so far. South Africa's Blue Flag beaches 2005:
(Five KwaZulu-Natal beaches have been given conditional Blue Flag status pending the results of water quality testing. These are italicised.) EASTERN CAPE Dolphin Beach, Jeffrey's Bay Gonubie Beach, East London Humewood Beach, Port Elizabeth Kelly's Beach, Port Alfred Wells Estate, north of Port Elizabeth KWAZULU-NATAL Addington Beach, Durban/eThekwini Anstey's Beach, Durban/eThekwini Bay of Plenty, Durban/eThekwini Hibberdene Beach, south coast Lucien Beach, south coast Marina/San Lameer Beach, south coast Ramsgate Beach, south coast South Beach, Durban/eThekwini Umhlanga Rocks Main Beach Uvongo Beach, south coast WESTERN CAPE Bikini Beach, Gordon's Bay Clifton 4th Beach, Cape Town Grotto Beach, Hermanus Lappiesbaai Beach, Stilbaai Mnandi Beach, Strandfontein The Blue Flag is given to beaches that meet 14 criteria spanning three aspects of coastal management: water quality, environmental education and information, and safety and services, which include excellent life-saving standards, top-rate parking and sparkling ablution facilities. Local authorities report a number of spin-offs from being awarded Blue Flag status, including an increase in visitors, improved behaviour on the part of beach-goers, property prices rising for homes near Blue Flag beaches - and visitors enjoying a well cared-for and managed beach. The Blue Flag is awarded for one year only. Fourteen South African beaches were awarded Blue Flag status in 2004, eight in 2003, eight in 2002, and four in 2001. In total, 24 South African beaches have been Blue Flag winners, 14 of these multiple winners. SA's Blue Flag beaches 2001-2005:
(2005 provisional in italics) EASTERN CAPE Dolphin Beach, Jeffrey's Bay (2004-2005) Gonubie Beach, East London (2005) Humewood Beach, Port Elizabeth (2002-2005) Kelly's Beach, Port Alfred (2005) Wells Estate, north of Port Elizabeth (2004-2005) KWAZULU-NATAL Addington Beach, Durban/eThekwini (2005) Anstey's Beach, Durban/eThekwini (2005) Bay of Plenty, Durban/eThekwini (2005) Hibberdene Beach, south coast (2003-2005) Lucien Beach, south coast (2004-2005) Margate Main Beach, south coast (2001-2004) Marina/San Lameer Beach, s coast (2002-2005) Ramsgate Beach, south coast (2002-2005) South Beach, Durban/eThekwini (2001-2005) Umhlanga Rocks Main Beach (2003-2005) Uvongo Beach, south coast (2005) Willard Beach, Ballito (2001-2002) WESTERN CAPE Bikini Beach, Gordon's Bay (2005) Clifton 4th Beach, Cape Town (2004-2005) Grotto Beach, Hermanus (2002-2005) Kleinmond Beach, near Hermanus (2004) Lappiesbaai Beach, Stilbaai (2005) Lookout Beach, Plettenberg Bay (2001-2002) Mnandi Beach, Strandfontein (2004-2005) Blue Flag is managed in South Africa by the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa, in partnership with the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and participating coastal authorities under the department's Coast Care programme. Coast Care gives financial and technical help for coastal development projects aimed mostly at poor communities, and offers education, training and research services. |
