PortAventura World in Spain is collecting 1kg of plastic from the Mediterranean Sea for each visitor to the park today (11 June).
In partnership with the Gravity Wave, an organisation working towards a plastic-free ocean, the resort aims to collect 10 tonnes of plastic, which it will then recycle. PortAventura has not said what it plans to do with the recycled plastic.
On X, formerly Twitter, PortAventura wrote: “PortAventura World joins the #PlasticFreeOceans movement with the Gravity Wave.
“Today, for every visitor that enters PortAventura Park, we will collect, together with Gravity Wave, 1kg of plastic from our sea.”
According to the Gravity Wave, almost 50 percent of plastic pollution in the sea is discarded fishing nets. These harm marine life and can take up to 1,000 years to break down.
“Our mission is to end plastic pollution, a commitment that requires transforming the way we relate to the ocean,” the Gravity Wave says on its website.
Sustainability at PortAventura
Last year, PortAventura World launched the largest self-consumption solar plant at a holiday resort in Spain. This is part of the resort’s bid to reduce its carbon footprint.
In addition to the plant, PortAventura World has already eliminated single-use plastics, and installed one of the largest electric vehicle charging hubs at a European resort. In 2020, PortAventura became the world’s first carbon neutral theme park.
“We have really focused on natural resources in our resort, and in the development of all the new sites in our masterplan – hotels, the convention centre and so on,” Choni Fernandez Veciana, chief sustainability officer at PortAventura World, told blooloop.
Images courtesy of PortAventura World
