In a formal correspondence, the Mediterranean fishing chamber demanded the governor of Tangier, Younes Tazi, to activate monitoring and enforcement, following an increase in the plundering and exploitation of sand on the beaches of the Tangier-Tetouan region, considering the continuation of the current situation a disservice to Morocco’s image.
The chamber called for the governor’s urgent intervention to put an end to the illegal plundering and exploitation of sand at several beaches in the region, particularly in the coastal area extending between Tangier and the Tahaddart region.
The chamber indicated, in its correspondence dated January 15, 2026, that it received several complaints and letters denouncing what it described as “criminal acts” related to the random and unlicensed extraction of coastal sand, confirming that these practices pose a real danger to the marine ecological balances in the Mediterranean Sea.
The chamber pointed out that the phenomenon leads to direct destruction of marine habitats and serious negative repercussions on national fishery resources, which represent the primary source of daily sustenance for a large number of professional fishermen, especially in traditional fishing, thereby threatening the social and economic stability of a broad segment of professionals.
The same source considered these practices a disservice to Morocco’s image internationally, as it is a country that is a signatory to several international agreements concerning the protection of marine and coastal environments and respecting the principles of sustainable development and rational exploitation of natural resources.
The chamber called on the governor to take strict and urgent measures and activate monitoring and enforcement mechanisms in order to stop the illegal exploitation of sand and protect the coastal strip from further degradation.
