A Spanish city has decided to impose heavy fine to prevent beachgoers from urinating on the beach or in the sea. On Tuesday, the city council in Spain’s Vigo passed a legislation banning urinating in the sea or on the beach. Anyone who is caught urinating in the sea will be compelled to pay a fine of €750 or £645 (around Rs 62,000) as penalty. The city council said that urinating in the sea or on the beach is ‘an infringement of hygiene and sanitary regulations.’
According to the reports, the Spanish city of Vigo has decided to introduce more public facilities on the beaches for visitors and swimmers. In a bid to promote a healthy and clean lifestyle, the city council has introduced several other measures including barring the use of soap or shampoo in the sea and banning smoking on certain beaches. Visitors will also not be allowed to wash cooking utensils in the sea water.
The council is said to have taken severe steps to prevent coastal pollution by banning ‘physiological evacuation on the beach or in the sea’ after the locals flagged the British tourists as a major problem. However, it is at present unclear how the authorities plan to monitor the suspected swimmers and surfers in the water and catch the violators to fine them. Along with announcing the penalty, the council has confirmed that it will install public toilets on the beach as a preventive measure to combat sea wees.
Reportedly, Vigo is not the first city in Spain to ban urinating in the sea. In the year 2017, the southeastern resort of San Pedro del Pinatar banned it along with nudity, playing bat and ball, and also reserving spots on the beach with a towel. Additional penalties of up to €1,500 are issued for lighting fires or barbecues. The San Pedro del Pinatar’s beach code also states that anyone selling food or drink without the correct license be fined as much as €3,000.
