Many environmental aspects of current life and the state of the world are affecting the islands off the coast of Spain. One of these is the island of Ibiza, long known as a party destination for the jet setters and celebrities, and also as a beautiful escape to crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean and the pure, pristine coasts. Unfortunately for 5 star Ibiza hotels and resorts is that the waters are being negatively affected through global warming and the ignoring of the effects the human impact has on the rest of the natural world. One problem of late, is an insurgence of jellyfish, literally tons of them taking over the waters and creating havoc for the life of the ocean as well as for the humans on land. Due to the disappearance of their natural predators, the sea turtle and tuna, due to the over-fishing, the population of various species has exploded. The high density of the jellyfish threaten the local marine life as well as the safety of the people traveling to the island and the people who live there and spend time on the beaches and in the water. Reports of jellyfish stings have doubled over the last few years, and the danger is that some of the stings are deadly. Resorts and beaches are doing what they can to warn the tourists and to educate them on the stings, and more life guards have been hired, along with first aid workers who are on the beaches at all times. The tourism companies, hotels, restaurants, and local businesses are worried about the effects that this will have in the coming tourist season.
Another problem for the beaches and cities along the shores of the Mediterranean and, well for all coastal communities throughout the world is just simply pollution. Ocean liners quite often dump their trash into the middle of the sea, thinking that it is so far out from shore and that the oceans are so big, but the trash is adding up and destroying the marine life of fish and the oceans plants. Ironically, many of the species in the sea do feed on jellyfish, plastic bags resemble jellyfish and many of those species are dying from starvation as their stomachs fill up with plastic bags. Many cities around the world have banned the use of these bags in grocery stores, requiring people to bring their own canvas bags with them on shopping trips, however, according to the organization Greenpeace, not enough is being done. Many of the resorts on the coasts of mainland Spain, and the Balearic Islands surrounded by the waters of the Mediterranean Sea find their livelihood and their means of conducting business from the sea and from the booming tourism industry, and many, such as the Island of Mallorca, have taken steps to be more environmentally aware.
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