Sea at Croatian beaches among cleanest in Europe

According to a report by the European Environment Agency, alongside Malta and Cyprus, Croatia has the best quality of bathing water on its beaches, Croatian Environment and Nature Protection Minister Mihael Zmajlovic said after presenting the results of last year's monitoring of the quality of bathing water on European beaches.

The sea is our wealth, our heritage and we have to be wise and preserve and protect our sea but also recognise its advantages and how to best utilise them, and projects like monitoring the quality of bathing water will certainly contribute to its preservation, Zmajlovic told reporters.

Projects to purify water water and management of waste water being poured into the sea will contribute to preserving this huge tourism resource as well as to preserve sea biodiversity.

The minister added that Croatia was one of the first countries to introduce systematic monitoring of bathing water which proved the country's awareness of the need to preserve the cleanliness of its sea. When it joins the European Union, Croatia will introduce 16.6% of its sea that will become part of the Natura 2000 network, he added. (Hina)