“Dear Lion,
I have visited Curium Beach near Episkopi with friends/visitors to Cyprus twice within the
past three weeks and to my dismay have seen raw sewage floating in the sea alongside
swimmers and being washed up on the beach. When I mentioned it to the life guard, I was
told they knew about it and the sea had been inspected and it was not classed as hazardous
to our health.
Could you please tell me who is responsible for the cleanliness of this beach as it is
disgusting?
Yours faithfully,
Mrs Sutcliffe”
The reply:
“I would like to reassure Mrs Sutcliffe that however unsightly this material may be, it does
not represent a health hazard. Furthermore, despite appearance, we are confident that this
is not human waste, and very strong circumstantial evidence indicates that it is in fact from
turtles. I hope that the following will provide a little reassurance.
We experienced a similar situation last year and conducted investigations to establish the
source. All BFC facilities were checked to ensure there were no leaks, facilities in local
villages were inspected, and ships entering Limassol were checked to ensure they had not
been illegally discharging at sea. Nothing untoward was discovered.
The Cyprus Tourist Organisation conducted samples of the water at Curium and these established that there
was no hazard to health. Most reassuringly perhaps, further laboratory tests in Nicosia
indicated that the matter was not in fact human. Based on similar experiences in Hawaii,
speculation at the time suggested it was from turtles. Further tests are now being
conducted.
The SBAA Environmental Team has conducted its own tests. I need to stress that these are
not scientifically recognised but they do reveal that the waste matter is composed entirely of
vegetable matter, with a strong probability that it is sea grass. The organisms within it are
not from mammals. This, and the fact that the material has only been seen during the turtle
breeding season, lends credibility, however incredible it may sound, to the notion that this is
indeed from turtles. Scientific investigations will continue and we will ensure that the results
are publicised as soon as they are known.
James Gondelle
Administrative secretary HQ SBAA”.
