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ENVIRONMENT

Millions of plastic pellets are spreading across Spain’s northern coast

A so-called 'white tide' of plastic pellets are washing up on the shores of Galicia and Asturias, polluting beaches and causing a political blame game between national and regional governments.

Published: 9 January 2024 11:10 CET
plastic pellets galicia
The plastic pellets spill has reminded Galicians of the Prestige oil disaster, the worst oil spill in European history. Photo: Sergio FLORES/AFP

Since mid-December, millions of microplastic pellets have washed up on the coast of northern Spain. These pellets have mainly affected beaches in dozens of municipalities of the Galicia region, but are now also washing up on the shores of neighbouring Asturias.

Dubbed a “white tide” by the Spanish press, the millions of tiny pellets came from a merchant ship flying under the Liberian flag that was carrying the microplastics and lost up to six containers in nearby Portuguese waters.

The pellets first washed up on the coast of Galicia and are now spreading along the coast to other northern regions. The areas of Galicia affected so far are A Illa de Arousa, Ribeira, Noia, Muros, Carnota, A Coruña, Burela and Foz, among others.

Pellets are microplastics smaller than 5 millimetres used in the manufacture of plastic products such as bottles, containers or bags.

READ ALSO: Spain’s Galicia struggles with mass shellfish die-off

In Asturias, where pellets have also been detected on some beaches, the regional government has activated an anti-pollution plan. Yet in Galicia, where the majority of the pollution has been so far, responsibility for the clean-up operations have been left to teams of volunteers. In recent days, over 400 volunteers took to the beaches along the coastline to try and clean up the pellets.

The clean-up operation, as well as when exactly the authorities were made aware of the microplastic pollution, has threatened to cause something of a political blame game between the Xunta de Galicia and national government.

With regional elections scheduled in Galicia in little over a month, the issue has taken on a heightened political dimension. The Xunta claims it did not receive official notification about the pellets until January 3rd, while the government says it was sent to the Galician coastguard three weeks earlier.

Alfonso Rueda, President of Galicia and the Partido Popular (PP) candidate seeking re-election in the coming weeks, has lambasted the government for a lack of data and accused his opponents of politicising the issue for electoral gain by “going into election mode” from “the first moment” and making a “blatant campaign” issue of an environmental problem.

On January 8th, the environmental unit of Spain’s prosecutor’s office opened proceedings to investigate what happened. According to the prosecutor’s statement, reported in Spanish daily El País, the pellets “contribute to microplastic pollution” and the materials “show signs of toxicity” and “are not biodegradable.”

The document also points to possible criminality, specifically Article 325 of Spain’s Criminal Code which outlines that “anyone who directly or indirectly causes or carries out emissions, discharges… into land, ground or sea waters, including the high seas, shall be punished with imprisonment of six months to two years.”

READ ASO: Spain’s ‘Prestige’ – The worst-ever oil spill in Europe ‘could happen again’

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SPANISH TRADITIONS

Everything you need to know about Mother’s Day in Spain

Here's how and when in May Mother's Day is celebrated in Spain, and why it owes its roots to religion and a Valencian poet.

Published: 3 May 2024 13:37 CEST
Everything you need to know about Mother's Day in Spain

This year, Mother’s Day (El Día de la Madre) is celebrated in Spain on Sunday May 5th. It’s always celebrated on the first Sunday of the month of May.

On this day, young children in Spain give their mothers manualidades (crafts) they’ve made at school as a token of their love.

Husbands and older sons and daughters may buy their wives/mothers a present to say thanks for all that they do as matriarchs, which usually takes the form of a detalle (smaller present than for a birthday or Christmas), and will come accompanied by a message such as te quiero, mamá (I love you, mum).

According to experiences website Aladinia, the average Spaniards spends €65 on gifts on Mother’s Day. 

Other mums may send out text messages to wish each other ¡Feliz Día de la Madre! (Happy Mother’s Day!).

As it’s always celebrated on a Sunday, many shops will be closed but you can expect plenty of restaurants to be open for lunch and perhaps dinner. 

Depending where you’re from, the first Sunday of May may or may not be when you’re used to celebrating Mother’s Day in your home country.

Around the world over 100 countries celebrate Mother’s Day (or Mothering Sunday, more on the difference below) – 77 in May, 13 in March, and 14 at other times during the year.

Some countries, like the UK, celebrate Mothering Sunday on the fourth Sunday during Lent, meaning that the date changes each year. This is because Mothering Sunday was originally a Christian holiday in some European countries.

READ ALSO: How a female teacher campaigned for Spain to have a Father’s Day

Spain, however, celebrates Mother’s Day on the first Sunday in May each year, meaning that it doesn’t have a fixed date either. But it wasn’t always like that.

The history of Mother’s Day in Spain

The first Mother’s Day in Spain was celebrated in Madrid all the way back on October 4th, 1926. Much of the impetus for establishing a day to celebrate mothers came, rather fittingly, from a poet.

Julio Menéndez García, a Valencian poet and public servant, pushed for a special day to celebrate mothers. Spanish newspaper La Libertad published a short section on Garcìa’s efforts in October 1925:

“A Levantine poet, Julio Menéndez García, has had the happy initiative that in Spain and in the Spanish-speaking nations a day should be consecrated to extol the love of mothers. The establishment of Mother’s Day is something tender and sympathetic, which deserves to be welcomed by governments, the press and public opinion, as it involves the highest tribute to women in their most august representation.”

After the Civil War, the church moved the date to December 8th to coincide with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, a key holiday among Catholics. 

Civil War-era poster urging Madrid mothers to leave the Spanish capital with their children before the arrival of Franco’s troops. (Photo by AFP)

But it wasn’t until 1965 that Mother’s Day was celebrated in May in Spain. The reason for this change of date was to separate the celebrations (both were considered important enough to have their own day) but also the influence of other countries, namely the United States.

The campaign for a Mother’s Day was originally started by Anna Jarvis, an American wanting to honour her mother, in 1908. By 1914, US President Woodrow Wilson officially signed it into law, establishing a May date. 

However, for many years in Spain department store El Corte Inglés maintained the date of 8th December, meaning that Spain Mother’s Day was celebrated twice a year for a while, commercially speaking at least.

In 1936 a local council in Breña Baja, on the Canary island of La Palma, became the first in Spain to move Mother’s Day to May.

However, in 1965 the church authorities officially decided to move Mother’s Day to May, a month consecrated to the Virgin Mary. May is also the month of female gods in the classical world, and in Catholicism is dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Interestingly, Jarvis herself later campaigned against the day, arguing it had become overly commercialised, something Spaniards often bemoan about other imported American customs like Halloween and Valentine’s Day. 

READ ALSO: How a female teacher campaigned for Spain to have a Father’s Day

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