Last week, France 24 broadcasted a documentary report called 'Spain: the challenge of plastic recycling in Andalusia, the garden of Europe' in which it delved into the issue of plastic waste generated in agricultural greenhouses.
The French media stated that Andalusian greenhouse agricultural activity generates 33,000 tons of plastic waste each year, which was exported to China, Pakistan, and Turkey to be processed for a long time. However, for two years, these countries have refused to treat the waste and Andalusia faces the challenge of recycling its own waste.
The report stressed the need to act quickly due to the impact that pollution has on the environment and health. The filmmakers interviewed a farmer, a representative of Ecologists in Action, a spokesperson of the SOC-SAT union, and researcher Marga Lopez Rivas of the University of Almeria, who spoke about microplastics in marine species.
95% of plastic is recycled
The documentary report was broadcast last Wednesday and on Thursday the 'Cute Solar: cultivating the flavor of Europe in solar greenhouses' promotion and information campaign issued an answer to it. “95% of the 33,000 tons of plastic generated annually by the solar greenhouses of the provinces of Almeria and Granada is recycled,” they stated. Despite this, the Association of Organizations of Producers of Fruits and Vegetables (APROA) said the sector needed to promote different lines to achieve recycling 100% of the plastic, such as information and awareness campaigns for producers and cooperatives, agreements with administrations to improve regulations, and implementing specific management systems that guarantee the traceability of the waste.
In this line, the general director of the Junta de Andalucia's Agricultural and Livestock Production, Manuel Gomez Galera, stated within the framework of the Primaflor Chair of Sustainable Agriculture and Healthy Eating that the Administration would soon unveil a traceability tool to organize a plastic waste management system for non-packaging plastics. He added they have been working on this tool with Mapla (Environment, Agriculture, and Plastics), the non-profit association created by the producers of plastics for agricultural use.
Source: diariodealmeria.es