page_title: Póvoa de Varzim beaches
section_title: sand dunes
hierarchical_section_title: Póvoa de Varzim beaches / Beach variation / sand dunes
caption_attribution_description: English: Primary Dune System of Póvoa de Varzim as seen from the North.
context_page_description: The beaches in Póvoa de Varzim are an extensive and continuous group of golden sandy beaches forming small bays or coves along the shoreline in northern Portugal. These do not have any barrier and are in fact a single beach, over 12 km long, under the name Praia da Póvoa de Varzim. Division may be arbitrary and serve localization porpoises.
  Historically, the waterfront has been used for trading, fish industry, health and leisure since remote periods. The fish industry in Póvoa de Varzim developed during the Roman Empire and is one of the earliest tourist areas in Portugal attracting visitors since early 18th century. Some of its beaches are rich in marine life. In 2016, all its coastline were blue flag beaches, including all the urban area from Cape Santo André to the seaport. Most of these also meet criteria under "Praia com Qualidade de Ouro" attributed by the Portuguese environmental organization Quercus, which is based in stricter criteria, including excellent water quality for five years in a row and better-scoring microbiological tests than those defined by the EU.
context_section_description: The Northwestern coast is completely dominated by the Dune system of Póvoa de Varzim, most of the foredunes are dynamic. There are dune recovery projects by the Portuguese Agency of the Environment, the Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente in areas where human activity was disruptive, including rehabitation of foredunes, using dune regenerators and grey dune preservation. Some foredunes suffered from Coastal erosion and, in an area, it was necessary to use sandbags to save it from collapsing.
  The grey dunes ecosystems suffered significant damage due to human activity, agriculture or housing. The remaining sites are protected: including the Rio Alto grey dunes, near the estuary of Rio Alto in the civil parish of Estela, and Barranha grey dunes, in Aguçadoura, the late is open for visitation using boardwalks.
caption: The Primary Dune System of Póvoa de Varzim as seen from Rio Alto estuary. This area extends for over 6 kilometers; 20,000 feet.
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