Perdios believes “Cyprus has all the tools to become a destination that respects the environment.

“Recent Eurostat statistics show that around 38% of Cyprus are protected areas, a high percentage since the average for the European Union is 26%.

“It is important that our island is in the top six countries that designate areas as protected.”

He spoke at a “Keep our Sand and Sea Plastic Free” event in Protaras.

Paralimni Mayor Theodoros Pyrillis said Malama beach is the second beach in the area to become free of plastics and microplastics.

Veronika Blach of TUI Care Foundation said: “We are very satisfied with the results, we are focusing on Ayia Napa and Paralimni, and we managed to have 100 businesses, including hotels, bars, restaurants, associations and schools, committing to plastic reduction and plastic elimination.

“That is quite an achievement, and our goal in the next stage is to increase that number to 300”.

Elke Dens, Director of Global Programmes of the Travel Foundation, said: “We need to tackle climate and other points like food waste. We have the hotel industry very much engaged, so maybe they can continue to work together.

“We also have Cyprus breakfasts. We offer local products to our guests, which is very successful. We will continue that to really make tourism more beneficial to local people here and local businesses”.

Helen Caron, TUI Group Purchasing Director for Hotels & Resorts, Cruises, said: “One of the key headline messages is the initiative has removed plastic waste equivalent to the weight of 23 -737 aircraft, which I think is a massive achievement if you put it into context.”

“We will announce the project for another three years, and I’m delighted that we can expand this initiative, which is a really important element to the Care Foundation”.

Source: Financial Mirror