It is great to see that sutainablesurf.org continues to go from strength to strength. They announced yesterday that they are now officially partnered with the Association of Surfing Professionals for the North American 2012 season to provide sustainability advice for all ASP events. This is a huge step forward for the surfing industry which recognises the importance of integrating sustainability into their everyday operations and especially the big events which have, as with any large event (have a look at my post on the Olympics), have an impact on the local infrastructure. Using a sustainable development perspective this includes the economic, environmental and social dimensions. The US surfing industry is now leading the way, and so they should be. I don't have the latest figures to hand, mainly because you have to pay for them but in 2006 the surf industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) estimated the industry in the US was worth $7.48 Billion which was an increase of 14.5 per cent from 2004. As soon as i find some free updated figures i'll post them. Don't forget that this figure represents apparel only, so things that are made and sold. The cost in real terms is significantly higher as the invisible costs or to use economic jargon negative externalities are exponentially higher. The link below to an article in the New York Times looks at some of these impacts:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/business/energy-environment/19SURF.html
It is this unseen cost that a sustainable development perspective brings into the light by considering the full system impact, or at least as much of the system as it is possible to understand. Science is not an exact science! So initiatives such as sustainable surf and the establishment of the Centre for Surf research at San Diego State University recognise the importance of understanding the overall impacts of surfing
Taking a lead from this it is time to take these initiatives back over the pond and integrate them in to the British surfing industry and cultural consciousness of surfers. Whilst some moves are being made they are slow and fragmented. Now is the time to give this agenda a very big kick up the arse, clearly the surfing industry is ready to adopt sustainability and global and local pressures are building as sustainable development becomes an increasingly prominent term, if somewhat fuzzily defined. Rio + 20 in June will give the term further exposure. I could go on about this but i won't for the sanity of all involved.
British surfing in general has had a lot of exposure in the last few days with the opening of the Museum of British Surfing today (06/04/12). The lead up to this has attracted national media attention with surfing being dubbed the 'The sport of Kings'. The Guardian, The Metro and The Mirror have run stories, not to mention last nights Channel Four news item
Looking back is important, it provides an essential context and language for all those involved in surfing in the UK, something perhaps we haven't really had in the past. Let's use this collective identity to move forward and do what we can now for our future generations. I won't preach, check out the press release below.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, California/USA (Thursday, April 5, 2012) – ASP North America and Sustainable Surf, a non-profit environmental organization focused on the surfing industry, are proud to announce their partnership for the 2012 season, offering green guidelines for all ASP North America events.
ASP North America and Sustainable Surf’s goal is to provide a useful framework for looking at event operations that can help reduce the environmental impacts of all contests, regardless of size and budget, and that will provide a common platform for ensuring greener events this year.
“This is a big step forward for us at ASP North America and we’re really excited about the opportunity to offer sustainability guidelines to our events to help decrease our impact on the environment,” Meg Bernardo, ASP North America Executive Manager said. “The ASP feels it’s a necessary step to look after our ocean and having Sustainable Surf on our side is a great asset to our events. We’re looking forward to working with them throughout the 2012 season, to help provide guidance directly to events that want it.”
Sustainable Surf’s success in providing guidelines and consulting services for events has already proven to be effective, as they played an integral role in greening the 2011 Rip Curl Pro Search San Francisco, which has been referred to as the greenest ASP surfing contest in history. Entering 2012 all event sponsors will have the option to capitalize on Sustainable Surf’s expertise in a tailor-made format for each contest.
“We are proud to be partnering with ASP-North America to provide a comprehensive, yet adaptable set of guidelines, that focus on the five major categories that most contribute to the footprint of any event,” Michael Stewart, Co-Founder of Sustainable Surf, said. “Sustainable Surf will also offer strategy and evaluation services to the events themselves, to help showcase their success stories in implementing the new guidelines at whatever level possible.”
Darren Brilhart, owner of Brillo Productions and longtime producer of major ASP North America events, worked closely with Sustainable Surf at the Rip Curl Pro Search San Francisco and is pleased to have their guidance in making more environmentally conscious decisions for future events.
“It was a great experience and eye opener working with Sustainable Surf at last year’s Rip Curl Pro Search Somewhere in San Francisco,” Brilhart said. “They are very thorough on what they do and it blew me away.”
Several ASP North America events have already taken the initial steps in the greening of their events, including the use of bio-diesel fuel for power, recycled materials for branding and heavily reducing the use of plastic water bottles. Kevin Whilden, Sustainable Surf Co-founder, thinks this partnership is a win-win for the entire surfing industry and feels Sustainable Surf’s expertise will allow events to further reduce the overall environmental impact.
“Many brands have already shown real initiative by taking some great steps towards the greening of their events, and the comprehensive framework of the new ASP North America’s green guidelines will help them to track, manage and communicate all their efforts,” Whilden said. “These best practices can be cost effective and easy to implement, and will further set the surfing industry on a leadership path that is consistent with surfing’s global image as an eco-friendly lifestyle.”
The next stop on the 2012 ASP North America season is the ASP PRIME Nike Lowers Pro, which is held at Lower Trestles from May 1 through 5, 2012.
(Source: http://sustainablesurf.org/2012/04/asp-north-america-partners-with-sustainable-surf/)
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