3 thousand euro for taking sand and shells from the beach? High fines in Sardinia do not stop tourists

900 kilograms of sand, pebbles and shells taken by tourists returned to the beaches of Sardinia. On the Italian island, this is strictly prohibited, and fines range from 500 to 3,000 euros. The luggage of tourists leaving Sardinia is checked.

Containers, bags, plastic bottles with sand, shells and pebbles confiscated in the port and airport of Olbia by customs officers and Financial Guard officers were transported back to the beaches from which they were taken. Determining the exact location is often possible also because there are different types of sand on individual sections of the coast; almost snow-white or almost pink in color.

For years, the Sardinian authorities have been conducting an information campaign to make people coming from all over the world aware that taking such “souvenirs” from beaches is considered theft there and is punishable according to regional tourism regulations.

However, local services regularly report further confiscations made during inspections of luggage of plane and ferry passengers.

The port and airport services from Olbia issued 198 fines, imposing fines totaling EUR 110,000. This sum will go to the region's coffers.

At the same time, another spreading phenomenon was also reported on the holiday island; tourists not only take what they find on the beaches, but also catch living specimens of fauna in the sea, further impoverishing the natural environment, which is also at risk of extinction. Among them is a species of sea snail known as the ferruginous patella or the Mediterranean ribbed patella. (PAP)

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