Every summer, Monaco’s postcard-perfect beaches play host to thousands of sunseekers..
From Larvotto to the Solarium and the Plage des Pêcheurs, both locals and tourists come to bask in the beauty of the Riviera. But behind the scenes, a quiet army is hard at work ensuring those turquoise waters and spotless sands stay just that—immaculate.
From May 1 to October 15, teams from the SMA (Société Monégasque d’Assainissement) carry out a meticulous daily mission: keeping the coastline clean. Using a combination of manual collection, high-tech machinery, and environmentally conscious tools, they monitor and remove everything from plastic bottles to jellyfish.
Two jet skis equipped with nets skim the surface of the water, scooping up floating waste. Meanwhile, inside the jellyfish nets, an electric robot glides silently through the sea, sucking up microplastics and debris too small for human hands to catch. It’s a high-tech guardian of Monaco’s bathing waters, operated remotely from the beach.
Before dawn breaks, a deep-cleaning machine patrols Larvotto Beach. Between 5am and 7am each morning, it sifts and aerates the sand, ensuring a clean slate before the first towel is laid down.
This behind-the-scenes effort is a powerful expression of Monaco’s commitment to environmental protection. The work may go unseen, but its impact is felt by every swimmer who steps into Monaco’s crystal-clear sea—and by the sea itself.
Photo by Mark Harpur
