Greek island Alonissos uses robots to clean the sea

The isle is a member of the Blue Municipalities Network, which aims to help clean up the Aegean Sea

On 31 July, the municipality of Alonissos – a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, conducted a cleaning operation of ports, beaches and reefs surrounding the landmass. The municipality was aided by the non-governmental organisation Aegean Rebreath, which deployed experts for the operation.

The action took place across the island in four different locations including two ports, Votsi and Gerakas. The coastal cleaning and lifting of abandoned nets from reefs were done by an underwater robot. Furthermore, the robot also provided additional data on the microplastics concentration in the waters surrounding the island.  

The robot, assisted by divers, was able to pull out fishing nets, stuck in the reef
Source: Aegean Rebreath on Facebook

During the two-day cleaning effort, the teams were able to pull out 900 kg of nets, 2 bags of fishing lines, 400 plastic bottles, 95 glass bottles, 26 car tires, 4 bags of plastic fragments, 110 plastic pipes, 78 tarpaulins, 3.5 bags of rope, 854 bottle caps, 2 beach umbrellas, 2 sunbeds, 1 chair and 1 boat ladder as well as loads of other rubbish.

Blue has a tinge of green

The municipality of Alonissos is a member of the Blue Municipalities Network, a group of 15 Aegean local authorities committed to the environmental protection of the sea. The network was created by Aegean Rebreath, an organisation that sprang up in 2017 by a group of divers who wanted to clean up the seabed, reefs and beaches.

Aegean Rebreath has grown since then and now attracts partners and sponsors. Additionally, Alonissos is the only island member from the Northern Sporades, a Greek island chain that includes also includes Skiatos, Skopelos and Skyros.

Mayor Petros Vafinis was quoted in a press statement, saying: "In Alonissos, "blue" has a "green" shade!” He continued by explaining that with the help of partner organisations, local authorities can develop and implement their pioneering green strategy for the sea, which is the main source of income for the island, be it through tourism or fishing.