The town of Argelès-sur-Mer has decided to ban hookah on the beaches to avoid nuisance.
Those who used to smoke hookah with their feet in the water will have to find another place. In Argelès-sur-Mer (Pyrénées-Orientales), the town hall has decided to ban shisha on its beaches. A decree was adopted, paving the way for a sanction of 130 euros for consumers who do not respect its content.
According to the town hall, the decision was motivated by the complaints of vacationers, disturbed by the gatherings of young people who gather around the hookah. Altercations are said to have taken place between each other on several occasions.
A slightly burned child
In addition, some would have complained about the incandescent embers which, with the wind, fly and attach themselves to the neighbors of the beach. A child would have been slightly burned last year, still according to the town hall which is expressed in the columns of the Parisian. Lifeguards employed to secure beaches and swimming will be responsible for enforcing the ban.
Argelès-sur-Mer is not the first town to restrict the consumption of tobacco, cigarettes or shisha, on the beaches. Several cities have created “tobacco free” zones by the sea, particularly in Corsica.
The objective here is also to reduce the nuisances linked to the consumption of cigarettes (butts in the sand and passive smoking) but also to take the lead in terms of health measures.
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