Inspectors strip 22 beaches of their Blue Flag

Spot checks by teams of Greek and international inspectors saw 22 beaches in different parts of Greece stripped of their Blue Flag certification on Thursday.

The Copenhagen-based Foundation for Environmental Education and the Hellenic Society for the Protection of Nature found that these 22 beaches no longer meet the standards for quality, safety, services and environmental management criteria to fly the coveted flag, which is awarded on an annual basis.

Four of the disgraced beaches are in Crete and three each are on the island of Naxos and the Halkidiki peninsula in northern Greece. The rest are distributed across different parts of the country.