Spain has been awarded a total of 638 Blue Flags, 540 for beaches and 98 for marinas, a new record which puts Spain at the top of the list of 46 participating states in the northern hemisphere.
The flags are awarded by the FEE, the Foundation for Environmental Education, now in its twenty-fifth year, and are based on compliance with established standards relating to such things as accessibility, water quality, environmental information made available to users and adherence to the laws.
Andalucia received 93 ‘Blue Flags’ this year, an increase of 14 on 2011, with 76 for beaches and 17 for marinas. By province, Malaga has 26 (+4) ‘Blue Flag’ beaches, Cadiz 21 (+1), Almeria 19 (+4), Huelva 8 (+1) and Granada 3 (+1).
Huelva has five ‘Blue Flag marinas, Malaga 4, Cadiz 4, Almeria 2 and Granada 1.