Sand theft in Sardinia: who's stopping it?

First and foremost , sand , unique and rare. But also turtles, stalactites, pebbles, and shells. Every year, as soon as summer begins and Sardinia is overrun with vacationers, one of the most serious forms of waste that has occurred on the island for years resurfaces: the theft of objects on the beach. Thefts are rarely discovered, despite the efforts of law enforcement, and when they do occur, they are surprising due to the quantity of goods seized. In July 2022, at Alghero airport , a Serbian and two Spaniards were attempting to leave the island with a kilo and a half of shells, sand , and pebbles hidden in their suitcases. They were stopped at the airport and fined.

SAND THEFT IN SARDINIA

Every day, reports of thieves caught at customs continue to pour in from the island's airports. In Alghero, two tourists tried to get away with a suitcase full of artifacts collected on the beach, while in Olbia the group was stopped for carrying a suitcase of sand . And in Cagliari, 11 people were stopped and fined for a sort of gang-bang at sea. Some time ago, faced with this outrage, there was even the first repentant thief, who later became the spokesperson for the "I Give Back" campaign.

READ ALSO: Beaches polluted by cigarette butts, stop those who use sand as ashtrays

THE SAND THEFT REPENTANT

There's also the first repentant, as well as the first spokesperson for a campaign titled "I Give Back." Sand theft , a gigantic waste of the environment, the places, and even everyone who frequents the beach , unfortunately continues unabated. But public awareness has grown, helping to open our eyes to this devastation.

Lorenzo Guredda , a fifty-year-old Roman, committed a sin at the age of twelve that would be entirely venial if attributed to a child. While on vacation, he stole sand, which he then stored in a flask, from the beautiful and ultra-protected Is Arutas beach on the Oristano peninsula in Sardinia. After forty years, Lorenzo has decided to return his stolen sand precisely to raise awareness about a phenomenon that has long since spiraled out of control: the waste and theft of sand.

SAND THEFT

A phenomenon that must be fought with all means possible. Fines first and foremost. Last year, for example, one of the perpetrators of this mass crime, a forty-year-old Englishman of Neapolitan origin, was stopped at the airport and fined a thousand euros.

Fines, however, aren't enough . Something needs to be done from the bottom up, from the citizens themselves. And several mayors on the island have done a great job in hiring volunteers, or even administrative staff, specifically tasked with apprehending, identifying, and punishing sand thieves.

Another useful aspect is the public opinion campaign . Germans, who, especially during the summer, love Italian beaches, are at the center of a veritable information campaign against sand thieves. Newspapers are publishing appeals to avoid this crime, which carries a fine of up to 3 euros. And the German embassy in Italy has appealed to all tourists arriving from Germany: don't touch the sand on the wonderful beaches of Sardinia and Italy in general. Sardinian citizens themselves are also taking action, spreading the word online and creating Facebook groups against these veritable sea criminals.

READ MORE: Towel ban on Stintino beach. To stop sand thieves.

SARDINIA STEALS AND LOOTS

He who does it himself does it three times . This proverb must have inspired the security personnel at Cagliari's Elmas airport , who, outraged by the constant discovery of sand and shells in the suitcases of unscrupulous tourists, decided to create a Facebook page a few years ago to denounce this outrage. " Sardinia Stolen and Plundered ", this is the name of the community born on the social network, has gone beyond all expectations, managing to attract the attention of the international press , from the English The Telegraph to the German Der Bild , which has firmly sided with the Sardinians and urged the institutions to crack down. Up until now, in fact, the notices posted on many of the island's beaches and the checks carried out by the local police have been of little use. Suffice it to say that at the Cagliari airport alone (there are two other airports in Sardinia: Olbia and Alghero), around five tons of sand are seized every year.

SAND STOLEN IN SARDINIA

The authors of "Sardinia Stolen and Plundered" had also launched an online petition, signed by over 10 people , calling for a specific regional law to toughen penalties and raise awareness on the issue. This initiative also meant that since 2017, anyone stealing the precious sand has faced fines ranging from €500 to €3000. Previously, however, when it came to airport security, the most thieves risked was a scolding and the resulting embarrassment.

Despite the law, the phenomenon is far from resolved, which is why civic duty among citizens remains crucial . Often, in fact, it is the locals themselves who intervene, urging unruly vacationers to retrace their steps or reporting incidents to the authorities (you can call the Forestry Corps' toll-free number 1515).

SAND THEFT IN ITALY

Plundering natural and artistic beauty to bring home a free souvenir is a dramatically growing habit . From Roman cobblestones to fragments of Pompeii , vacationers' suitcases too often fill up with stolen goods we simply cannot afford to have stolen . This disease, moreover, seems to know no bounds: at airports on many Caribbean islands, for example, coral detectors have been installed to identify the precious fragments that tourists take from coral reefs. Returning to sand, the most notorious theft in recent years occurred in Jamaica, where an entire beach disappeared . Very often, in fact, the precious granules are stolen to be reused in the construction industry or, even worse, to be relocated to exclusive resorts. In the 2008 Jamaican case, criminals stole hundreds of tons of sand loaded onto over 500 trucks, transforming one of the island's most beautiful beaches, Coral Springs, into a shapeless and forgotten expanse. After months of investigation, the police were unable to locate either the sand or the criminals.

LEARN MORE: Beach litter, we're the first vandals. With this garbage we throw in the sand

“BRING HER TO YOUR HEART” CAMPAIGN

The title is very effective: it evokes the idea that if you love a place, there's no need to carry around some stolen object from its natural habitat. Just keep that place close to your heart. And so, to combat theft on Sardinia's beaches and sea, the "Portala nel cuore" campaign was born, featuring three Sardinian-born ambassadors: TV presenter Geppi Cucciari, basketball player Gigi Datome, and actress Caterina Murino. The initiative was funded by the Sardinia Region and the Customs Agency: let's hope it works and isn't just a publicity stunt for those who participate.

The images are taken from the Facebook page Sardegna rubata e depredata

STORIES OF THOSE FIGHTING FOR CLEAN SEAS AND BEACHES:

• Beach patrol officers recruited through crowdfunding. They're fighting illegal activities and stopping those who pollute the sea.
• Cigarettes on the beach, this is how Paola collects thousands of butts every day. Let's do the same!
• Retired Ulisse on the beach in Sardinia: he blocks uncivilized people and collects waste (photos and video)
• Gianni: the Sicilian retiree who collects cigarette butts on Palermo's beaches. And pays one euro per butt.