Maldives at risk from garbage island growing by one square meter a day

The Maldives is the marine paradise most beloved by Italians, with 1.190 coral islands concentrated in 26 atolls, 93 of which are occupied by luxury tourist villages and resorts. It's no coincidence that Italians are the primary visitors to the Maldives, representing almost 20 percent of total arrivals, compared to 17,9 percent for Britons and 11,8 percent for Germans.

Garbage Island in the Maldives

Few travellers, however, know that next to paradise there is hell, namely the island of Thilafushi , located just seven kilometres from the capital of the Maldives, Malé, and which has become a sort of open-air dump for the entire archipelago.

READ ALSO: Garbage Patch State, the archipelago of waste thrown into the sea

RUBBISH ISLAND MALDIVE

The situation is collapsing. 500 tons of waste arrives on the island every day , equivalent to five garbage trucks hauling it every hour . According to calculations by the local environmental organization Blue Peace, the island of shame, also known as Rubbish Island, is growing at a staggering rate of one square meter per day.

(Image source: Getty Images )

Garbage Island, Maldives

On the other hand, it couldn't be otherwise, because here, in an area of ​​over 50 hectares, all the waste from the resorts on other islands ends up , all the filth produced by tourist traffic. A veritable garbage dump, where the garbage is then hidden and macerated under the sand and even directly into the sea, or incinerated by hand with poisonous fumes that rise into the sky every day. The threat, at this point, is to ruin the most beautiful sea in the world , and for this reason the Malé government is trying to remedy the situation. How? By forcing all the other islands to separate their waste and adopt a self-disposal system. Will it succeed? For now, paradise is being defiled by hell.

THE STORIES OF THOSE FIGHTING TO SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT:

• Retired Ulisse on the beach in Sardinia: he blocks uncivilized people and collects waste (photos and video)
• Planting and adopting trees is the latest trend among green-loving citizens. They're also urban gardeners (photos).
• Cigarettes on the beach, this is how Paola collects thousands of butts every day. Let's do the same!
• Italy's greenest newsagent: the story of Mauro Silenzi, who with his committee is planting hundreds of trees at Porta Portese (photo)
• Maria Immacolata is 75 years old and works as a beauty bringer. Bari's flowerbeds are being reborn thanks to her flowers.