Sint Maarten and the US Virgin Islands have therefore now completed their pilot
phase and have achieved full implementation of the Blue Flag programme.

The International Jury decided to award the Blue Flag to 81 beaches and 13 marinas in the Bahamas, Brazil, Dominican Republic, French Departments and Territories, Jamaica, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Sint Maarten, South Africa, Turks and Caicos Islands, US Virgin
Islands and the United Arab Emirates. Detailed information about the 2011-2012
awards for the Southern Hemisphere and the Caribbean will be published on the
Blue Flag website www.blueflag.org from 1 November 2011.

Malcolm Powell, Chair of the International Blue Flag Jury and member of the FEE Executive Board, said: "Blue Flag is proud to count so many qualitative sites in the world, and to see the interest for the programme increase as more countries join us."

Each year, national Blue Flag juries assess all Blue Flag candidates to ensure they meet all of the criteria for beaches and marinas at the national and international level. Those that do
are then forwarded to the International Jury, who focuses on set criteria that
varies from year to year, before giving a final verdict.