The second edition of the Torreguadiaro Beach Clean saw players participating in the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucia Masters join local volunteers as part of the European Tour group’s Green Drive.
Seven-time DP World Tour winner Álvaro Quirós returned to the beach he used to visit as a child to help with the clean up, organised with the support of San Roque City Council, alongside Portuguese player Ricardo Santos and Juan Serván, deputy mayor and delegate for the Environment of San Roque, and Óscar Ledesma, deputy mayor of the Valle del Guadiaro area.
More than 80 volunteers – including 25 children – helped with the beach clean in the week that the European Tour group became the first professional golf Tour to announce its commitment towards net zero carbon emissions, by becoming a signatory to the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework, and the Framework’s Race to Zero pledge.
“This is the beach that I visited when I was growing up and now I come here with my kids. We cleaned up this part of the beach in an hour, so it’s a very small thing that people can do in their free time,” said Quirós.
“If we take care of the environment that we live in, it will be easier to live in. Small steps from individuals can make a difference.”
Every year almost eight million tonnes of plastic waste go to the sea. This is extremely harmful to marine and human life, as it contributes to the reduction of biodiversity and the extinction of species. Last year’s inaugural Torreguadiaro Beach Clean resulted in 230kg of waste being removed from the beautiful corner of the Cadiz coast, and similar initiatives have also taken place at DP World Tour events including the Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed and Genesis Scottish Open.
💯Ayer disfrutamos de una actividad fantástica junto a Álvaro Quirós en la Playa de Torreguadiaro.
— Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters (@edamvalderrama) October 13, 2022
🏖️La iniciativa Beach Clean Up reunió a muchos voluntarios que echaron una mano al golfista andaluz para limpiar la playa.
📽️Disfruta de las mejores imágenes. #EDAM2022 pic.twitter.com/0ZcVUp9BJ6
Becoming a signatory to the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework is the logical next step in the Tour’s Green Drive initiative, which has grown in scale and impact over several years and was re-launched on World Environment Day last year. The most recent Sustainability Strategy, further aligns Green Drive with the Tour’s wider Golf for Good programme to create a new, holistic approach to sustainable development – on and through the Tour.
Detailed implementation plans are already under way spanning governance, operations, tournaments, venues, media and technology, communications and partnerships. Sustainability performance indicators and carbon emissions are being tracked across all aspects of the Tour’s operations through new internal mechanisms, and tools provided by the GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf.
