Stephanie Fsadni sifts through the history of creating artificial beaches in Malta and digs out the pride that comes after the hard work involved in acquiring Blue Flag status.

The first beach in Malta that came to be associated with the term ‘artificial’ was Pretty Bay in Birżebbuġa. My parents used to take me there as a child and I have vague memories of the little sandy beach: it only covered a corner of the bay but drew hundreds of bathers.

People who simply loved going to Pretty Bay may not have liked the idea of losing this natural beauty spot at first, but one thing is for sure: they no longer needed to fight for space to lay their towel

In the late 1980s, the bay was artificially filled with sand recovered from the sea during dred-ging works for the Freeport.

People of the locality or who simply loved going there may not have liked the idea of losing this natural beauty spot at first but one thing is for sure: they no longer needed to fight for space to lay their towel because there was now plenty of room.

Years later, in 2004, another beach was replenished at St George’s Bay, in St Julian’s. The Malta Tourism Authority took on this project because there was a demand for a sandy beach in this top touristic area with a concentration of five-star hotels.

This development, however, differed from the one at Pretty Bay in one main aspect (and a more expensive one too the material used to enlarge St George’s was not sand but finely crushed granite, imported from Jordan.

“It is crushed to a particular density, circa 2mm, as specified by experts,” explains Raymond Azzopardi, senior manager of the Product Development Directorate at the MTA.

“The aim was to have granules a bit bigger than the size of normal sand, so that these would not be swept away by the sea so easily or be blown into residential areas.”

Despite the effort, the water has swept away a considerable amount of ‘sand’ over the years, although not as much as if it were natural sand, claims Mr Azzopardi.

“A bay is dynamic due to prevailing winds and waves. We try to manipulate the sand the least possible and level it out when absolutely necessary, but ultimately, nature dictates where the water line is,” he admits.

He says that fortunately, after the replenishment, some of the bay’s original sand returned and the beach is now experiencing the processes of a natural beach.

In 2006, a similar exercise was carried out by the MTA at Buġibba, another tourist area.

A whole sandy beach was created where there was none before. The Buġibba Perched Beach was, however, built with the possibility of reversing the process to its natural state, if ever the need arose.

In this case, a retaining wall was built on the shoreline and the same kind of artificial sand utilised at St George’s was used as beach fill for 2,000 square metres of rocky coast.

The idea behind this man-made fence was to stop the sea from taking away the ‘sand’, but quite a good amount is invariably lost when the waves break on this beach during storms, especially those powered by Northerly (Majjistral) and Northeast (Grigal) winds.

However, nature is generous and grandiose.

The same waves that eroded the artificial sand deposited some of it on three nearby coves and transformed them into shallow-water pools or small beaches.

These are very popular among families with small children due to their low gradient into the water.

As regards St George’s Bay, Mr Azzopardi says it is more popular with the younger generation, and the fact that most foreigners staying in the Sliema/St Julian’s area go there draws local youngsters too.

This beach is as frequented in the evenings by revellers as it is by bathers during the day, with regular police patrols keeping the situation in check.

Flying the Blue Flag

This, apart from other criteria, is necessary to keep the Blue Flag status that was awarded to St George’s Bay in 2009. These criteria can be grouped into four categories: water quality, safety and services, environmental education and activities and sustainable management.

The Buġibba Perched Beach gained the same eco-label for the first time in 2011.

Out of the eight local Blue Flag beaches, the MTA also manages Għadira Bay, Qawra Point and the latest addition, Fond Għadir in Sliema.

The authority also manages Golden Bay, which has been awarded the title Beach of Quality, meaning it has achieved 70 per cent of the Blue Flag criteria for beaches.

The MTA manages the beaches between 10am and 6pm and provides a number of services, including life guards, beach supervisors, a clinic for first aid purposes, waste separation bins and a small library. A number of environmental and educational activities are also held on site.

“We work a lot with Skolasajf and organise activities such as snorkelling and talks on recycling of waste,” explains Mr Azzopardi. “You’d be surprised by the ideas children come up with; they have such a vivid imagination.”

The authority distributes paper or plastic ash receptacles for smokers, and pottery ashtrays are placed at access points. It also issues a leaflet called Beach News that includes information on the beach code of conduct and activities being held at the beaches it manages.

Highlights this year include T-shirt painting at St George’s Bay on July 26 and snorkelling sessions at Fond Għadir on August 2.

The other Blue Flag beaches are Għajn Tuffieħa and Ramla l-Ħamra in Gozo, both managed by the Gaia Foundation, and Paradise Bay Hotel’s private beach. These are also supported by the MTA.

Mr Azzopardi emphasises the importance of keeping our beaches clean, not only for the sake of the Blue Flag status, but also for ourselves.

If you throw glass bottles into the sea, later generations will likely find bits and pieces of glass scattered on the beach

“Even though rubbish is collected on a daily basis, and the sand is sifted regularly, this is not enough. For example, cigarette butts and especially ash disappear in the sand, so it’s impossible to retrieve them,” says Mr Azzopardi.

“Also, if you throw glass bottles into the sea, later generations will likely find bits and pieces of glass scattered on the beach.”

He adds that people are becoming more environmentally conscious and acting more responsibly, but more can be done, especially among the younger generations.

Meanwhile, the MTA has set its sights on a number of other coastal areas.

In a few weeks’ time, it is to launch an experimental full management project at Pretty Bay for a limited period of time.

“We have been studying this beach for the past two years, and I believe there are good prospects for it,” concludes Mr Azzopardi, without going into further detail.