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Benidorm's accessible beaches are transformed into 'smoke-free spaces'

 

The City Council is considering extending the initiative to other spaces such as parks or gardens

As a result of the collaboration agreement signed between Benidorm City Council and the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC), the areas of Accessible Beaches in Levante and Poniente have been transformed into 'smoke-free spaces', as announced today by the Councillor for Beaches, Mónica Gómez.

The councillor recalled that in Spain, smoking is the cause of the death of “around 60,000 people”. It is therefore the “responsibility” of the public administration “to ensure the well-being and health of citizens”.

The aim of this action is to “create an environment free of harmful tobacco smoke” by warning of the danger that exposure to tobacco smoke poses for smokers, “and also for passive smokers.”

The Accessible Beaches areas of Benidorm have the necessary infrastructure and adapted services so that people with functional diversity can enjoy the sea and sand without barriers. They promote equality and social inclusion. Now they also advertise that they are 'smoke-free spaces'.

To this end, the City Council has published posters advertising the event and indicating that it is a “healthy initiative to prevent cancer”. It also encourages citizens who support this type of initiative to share their experiences on social media using the hashtag #RespiroLibre and the AECC hashtag #TodosContraElCáncer.

Mónica Gómez explained that the agreement with AECC will go beyond the creation of 'smoke-free spaces' on the Accessible Beaches and, from the Department of Health coordinated by Ana Pellicer, they are "studying the expansion of the initiative or other municipal spaces". She also stressed that "soon", the Department of Parks and Gardens, directed by José Ramón González de Zárate, "will create El Moralet spaces where tobacco is avoided and healthy habits are promoted".

"It is about raising awareness and disseminating among citizens the need to prevent smoking and the services that help people to quit a habit that causes enormous damage and affects patients and their families," the councillor concluded.