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The city decreed that coconut husks, tossed aside on beaches by locals and tourists alike, are a nasty eyesore and as of Dec. 1, sale of the fruit is banned on the sand, AFP reports.
"Go on Ipanema beach at the end of the day and you'll see a mountain of coconuts that people have left on the sand. What attracts rats most to the beach are coconut husks," Jovanildo Savastano, the official in charge of the beaches, told AFP.
He said up to 30 tons of empty coconut shells are found each day.
Beachgoers who can't imagine a day on the shore without coconut juice can still get it in bottles or cans.
"This ban favors companies more than the people," environmentalist Gerhard Sardo told AFP.
Some environmentalists say the coconut husks don't pose an environmental threat because they are biodegradable, and that it's a healthy snack. Rio's mayor Eduardo Paes has offered to reconsider the coconut ban, but only if beachgoers promise to take their trash -- and coconuts -- with them when they leave.
What do you think of the coconut ban? Let us know in the comments below.
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11-28-2009 @1:36PM rick ravon said... Ban cocoanuts ? Are they nuts,er,crazy ? They really should ban bananas. Countless accidents could be prevented if there were no banana peels lying in wait on those otherwise pristine beaches to trip up some unsuspecting tourist !
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11-28-2009 @1:53PM lisanie43 said... I am sorry, but the ban is strongly encouraged. Coconut may be biodegradable, but most people dispose other things along with coconuts that may pose as a biohazard to the environment. If people stop dumping coconut husks, then they will also learn how to stop dumping other trashes as well. People need learn how to exercise restraint.
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11-28-2009 @2:11PM DianaDanko said... We didn't ban peach pits when the Olympics were in georgia. People should dispose of garbage in a receptable designed for garbage. What will be the charge? Illegal disposal for coconut in the first degree?
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11-28-2009 @2:25PM rob said... dont forget to ban cigerettes and dont they have a tiger and bull shark problemin Riciffe
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11-28-2009 @2:35PM rick ravon said... I like the way you think.
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11-29-2009 @8:18AM glauri9538 said... So what makes you think the folks leaving the coconut shells on the beach (instead of disposing of them properly) will toss the bottles/cans of coconut juice in a recycling container? So now the beaches will be full of 30 tons of empty glass and plastic bottles instead. That solves the problem, right? LOL
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11-28-2009 @3:18PM Mishell said... Am I the only one who thinks it seems odd that people just randomly snack on whole coconuts at the beach? I mean even if you compared it to apples in the US, 30 tons of them a day? I cant imagine its a particularly convenient snack. Its seems it would be rather bulky and theres still that whole "need a machete to open it" factor.
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11-28-2009 @3:56PM UncleD said... glauri...you apparently didn't read the article. First, a coconut shell weighs considerably more than an empty 8oz plastic bottle or aluminum can.
Secondly, a plstic or aluminum container dosen't become a smelly rotten piecs of garbage that decomposes and attracts rodents.
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11-30-2009 @8:50AM What?! said... Interesting article. I love coconuts, but I didn't know it would attract nasty rats. Rats breed awfully fast. A big city problem. Yes, Rio need to get ready for the Olympics.
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