Costa del Sol News
During the high summer season that is now beginning, the presence of sea foam in the waters of Malaga's beaches will be less than usual for this time of year. In fact, according to the arguments provided by an expert in the field, the 'foam removal' boats will have less work this summer than in other years for a very specific reason. Indeed, Francisco Franco, a professor at the University of Malaga (UMA) and director of the Costa del Sol Coastal Sciences Chair, attributed this to the severe storms that occurred in recent months, as there was no need to replenish the coast with as much sand this time. "This summer there will be fewer incidents related to the presence of sea foam, as a consequence of the DANA weather phenomena, rivers have carried sediments to the beaches and there has not been much need for regeneration; when there are no regeneration processes, sea foam hardly appears; sea foam originates when water washes over the sand and the less mineral dust there is, the less likely sea foam is to form, the DANA have caused the beaches to regenerate naturally this year," emphasized Franco.
Additionally, during the summer season, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools will also come into play, which will provide a five-day advance warning about which beaches will have more sea foam. They will also offer clues, for example, about points along the coast where to "start cleaning," as explained by Francisco Franco during the presentation of the high season beach plan in Malaga after council members Teresa Porras and Avelino Barrionuevo had spoken.
According to research in which Franco and other UMA experts participated, the presence of sea foam on the beaches of Malaga is a natural process that is harmless to human health, as the concentration of pollutants in sea foam does not usually reach toxic levels, and the fecal origin of these substances is ruled out.
Generally, the studies conducted by the UMA concluded that the small minerals found in the sea foam are very similar to those that are part of the Malaga geology and are completely harmless to health.
Furthermore, Francisco Franco explained during his speech on Thursday that the quality of the bathing waters on the Malaga coast is assured for another year. However, this expert reminded that periodic analyses of the water's sanitary quality will be carried out "to ensure that any bathing at any beach in the city is healthy."
Just as with the prevention of sea foam, since 2019, the experts from the Chair of Coastal Sciences have been working with AI algorithms based on data also provided by lifeguards about the presence of jellyfish and invasive algae, and with five days' notice, information will be available about the behavior of these other typical summer occurrences.
In this regard, Francisco Franco argued that such knowledge allows for serious preventive work, and, for example, to know in advance which beaches the jellyfish will reach. Another key point made by this expert indicated that the arrival of invasive algae will have a lesser impact in the city of Malaga than on the beaches of the Western Costa del Sol.
