BCEDA News

Baldwin Beaches Get National Attention: Gulf Shores again considered for inclusion on list of cleanest coastlines

Mobile Register -- 03/18/04

Efforts to maintain Alabama beaches are again getting national attention at a time when increased development and tourism are causing more problems in many coastal communities, according to the Clean Beaches Council in Washington, D.C.

The eight-mile public beach area in Gulf Shores is one of about 100 coastal areas in the United States being considered for inclusion in the national organization's 2004 Blue Wave list.

While the list will not be officially announced until May, city and council officials said the Gulf Shores beaches have again met with judges' approval.

Lisa Kennedy, Gulf Shores city spokeswoman, said Wednesday that she was told that the city passed the criteria for the best beaches list for the third year in a row.

"We haven't gotten anything in writing, but when I called to ask them when they'd be down to look at us, because I wanted to talk to them while they were down here, they said they'd already been down and that 'y'all did just fine,'" Kennedy said.

The campaign studies beaches around the country to determine the best-maintained coastal stretches in the United States, said Walter McLeod, council president.