“The gods were with us,” said Tony Soriano, Chairman of the Surfrider Foundation Huntington Beach/Seal Beach Chapter. By the Thursday, October 6th tee-off of the Chapter’s “Hacktoberfest” 2nd Annual Golf Classic at Meadowlark Golf Club the skies were clear after two days of heavy rain. This was a fundraiser for the Huntington Beach Coastal Preservation.

Setting their surf boards aside, Surfrider members got out their golf clubs and welcomed guests to a day of golf, contests, a barbecue dinner, and prizes. There were prizes for the top three golfing teams, longest drive, and closest to the pin.

First Place Team Winners were the surf celebrity team consisting of Jeff Deffenbaugh, Sam August, Byron August and Robb Havassy. The Second Place Team Winners were Robert Montenegro, Jay Reed, Davey Obade, and Marc Belmonte. The Third Place Team Winners were Huntington Beach City Councilman Keith Bohr, Greg Kishel, Gary Sahagen and Bob Barry. The renowned surf artist Robb Havassy won both the longest drive and closest to the pin contests.

Volunteer Associates from Title Sponsor Kohl’s specialty stores were on hand and did an outstanding job. You could see them helping with registration and the event’s activities around the golf course in bright green “Hacktoberfest” Kohl’s T-Shirts.

Lifestyle apparel sponsor Volcom gave out hats, DVDs and stickers to everyone who brought a pair of used denim jeans to donate to its “Give Jeans a Chance” program to help the homeless. Primo beer had a tent on the course and supplied the golfers with its own Hawaii’s Original Beer and soft drinks.

Other sponsors provided gifts and prizes. RipCurl donated a precision “Tide” watch. The Wyland Foundation gave a personally signed, lithograph print titled “Hawaii in Paradise.” Surf City Art Co. contributed the Sean Davey Collection. Matson Graphics donated a $700 Gift Certificate for a custom logo and Rob Havassy Art donated artwork. Orange County Clothing Company also donated some cool Hats and Tshirts.

Whole Foods put together an amazing gift bag filled with coffee, olive oil and pasta, cookies, chocolates and more. Fred’s Mexican Café donated “Burrito Bucks” and The River’s End Café gave gift certificates. The Huntington Beach Waterfront Hilton contributed a night for two at their beautiful hotel, and Huntington Beach Hyatt Regency – a dinner for two at their Signature restaurant.

Superior Communications donated a Jawbone Bluetooth headsets and smart phone support systems. Vans, Dixon Golf, Shorebreak Hotel, Farmers and Merchants Bank, and Rainbow Disposal also showed their support.

Jeff Deffenbaugh, the Surfrider HB/SB Chapter’s Surf Ambassador, added the “Hacktoberfest” First Place Golf Trophy to his many surfing awards. He mentioned that he appreciates the opportunity his role as Ambassador gives him to help the Chapter “spread the word about cleaning up the ocean…especially to the younger surfers.”

Huntington Beach City Councilman Bohr said he had just come from a council meeting that approved an Environmental Impact Report on banning plastic bags. A supporter of the ban, he emphasized “In the long run we’ll be glad to get rid of the plastic that’s littering our ocean.” He was happy to be invited to participate in the golf tournament.

Gary Sahagen, the Director of the Huntington Beach International Surfing Museum, was pleased to be at the “Hacktoberfest.” A longtime supporter of the Surfrider Foundation, he joked that “It’s a way for me to give back after stealing all those waves.”

Event/MPA Outreach Coordinator Gene Rascon said, “The HB/SB Surfrider ‘Hacktobertfest’ Golf Classic was a success because of the involvement of both the surfing and non-surfing community and their strong interest in maintaining and protecting our exceptional coastline. Additionally, the bridge between the two was built by the hard work of the HB/SB Surfrider Executive & Core Volunteer Committee.” He was confident all along that the weather would be perfect for a day of golf and that he was excited to see everyone show up and have such a good time.

We must also thank Ricky Blake & Matson Graphics for donating their time to design our Hacktoberfest Poster and tshirts.

Story written by: SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel
http://www.surfwritergirls.blogspot.com

There was a tribal gathering of surfers just off the shores of Surfer’s Point in Ventura this weekend when over 100 California Surfrider Foundation Chapter members met at the Crowne Plaza Beach Resort Hotel for their annual conference. Surfers from San Diego to Crescent City came together to learn and share ideas about protecting, and preserving the oceans and beaches.

SurfWriter Girls Sunny and Patti were ready to cover the conference… Huntington/Seal Beach Chapter members Gene Rascon, Seth Matson and Tony Soriano were there, too, along with Jeff Coffman and his family and Gilbert Castillon. So were Darrel and Deborah Ferguson from the Newport Beach Chapter.

The Ventura Chapter, which was celebrating its 20th Anniversary, was proud to host everyone. Conference Coordinators Sarah Damron and Nancy Hastings wasted no time in starting off the proceedings.

Media guru Seth Godin (via video) talked about “the stories we tell.” He advised everyone to find ways to tell stories that make the group’s conservation message come alive for people. “To make change happen, you have to connect,” he said. “Find people and lead them. Make them part of your tribe.”

Tribes are groups that feel passionate about something. Each of us is in a tribe – sometimes multiple tribes – or longs to be. For those of us who are passionate about preserving and enjoying the beach, we need to find others who feel this passion, too.

Jim Moriarty, Surfrider CEO, welcomed everyone by saying, “Our job is to make things happen.”

Moriarty emphasized the importance of Surfrider’s conservation message and added that members around the world are helping to spread it.

“In Rio samba bands play drums and people dance along behind them and clean up the beach. In Jamaica people are selling high-end bags to tourists and then using the money to buy cheap recyclable bags to give out.”

In the workshops that followed speakers shared their strategies on Core Advocacy Issues: Rise Above Plastics, Coastal Preservation, and Know Your H20.

Rise Above Plastics (RAP):

Bill Hickman’s focus is on education and research. “We need to get more cities on board with bag bans,” he said. One way to reach people is with the RAP Activist ToolKit, which is linked to the Surfrider site.

Amy Bloom gets the word out with monsters and puppets. Children make them out of trash. She pointed out that “Three year-olds can be pretty bossy with their parents about not using plastic.”

Ximena, from Monterey, got a $54,000 NOAA grant to hire 50 “Marine Debris Technicians” to speak at community meetings about ways people could reduce their plastics footprints. The technicians spoke to close to 3000 people.

Michael Stewart shared a novel idea – turning “Waste into Waves.” He’s working with Marko Foam to convert discarded Styrofoam into recycled “Eco-Surfboards.” The boards are light weight and have a 50 – 70% reduced bio-footprint.

Coastal Preservation:

Mark Rauscher said “Seawalls kill beaches.” He explained that buildings and structures need to be placed in a way that results in “beach nourishment.” Some may need to be moved, he added. For more on this go to beachapedia.org

Nancy Hastings talked about the restoration of the Malibu Lagoon. People’s intentions were good, she said, but it ended up damaging the wave break. When a project like this is underway it’s important to make sure that all the issues are considered.

The San Francisco chapter has been trying to save Sloat Beach. After the highway collapsed a 600-foot-long rock revetment was installed and the beach became a dumping ground.

Know Your H20:

Joe Geever summed up our water goal: “Reduce, reuse, recycle.” He showed a 3-minute clip of the animated film “Cycle of Insanity” to dramatize how waste permeates our water system.

Brad Snook (SLO) and Paul Jenkin (Ventura) told about projects in their areas – the Morro Bay region treatment facility and Green Streets Project. Jenkin and Cynthia Hartley developed a computer map to show low-impact ways to reduce water run-off.

Paul Herzog focused on Ocean Friendly Gardens – using plants, hardscape, drainage and fertilizers in ways that don’t impact water runoff and pollute the beaches. Anyone can do an OFG. It’s not just surfers or people who live near the beach. An OFG manual is on beachapedia.org

Luncheon speaker Brian Brennan, a California Coastal Commissioner and former Ventura Chapter Chair, said we need to “build coalitions of ‘stakeholders’ in the environment…not just surfers.” His advice to the group was: “Look at it, get on it:…and get it done.”

The afternoon workshops resulted in spirited discussions on: Media, Policy and Legislation, and Youth Outreach.

Scientist and filmmaker Randy Olson focused on ways to improve public service announcements (PSAs). His advice: Don’t get bogged down in the details – tell individual stories. Provide: “Facts wrapped in an emotion.” We need to make people feel and care.

For example, the Center for Disease Control couldn’t get people interested in a “dull” topic like Disaster Preparedness. So, it created a Disaster Preparedness Guide for a Zombie Invasion. That did the trick. The next day it got 30,000 online views…and crashed the Fox News server.

Ericka Canales explained the ins and outs of the regulatory world. Knowing who makes the decisions and how it happens is critical.

Denise Erkeneff explained how to connect with students and get the next generation involved. Talking their language is the key and building relationships.

…After spending the whole day inside just steps from the ocean, Surfer’s Point beckoned. And the Surfrider tribe headed out to catch the last waves of the day.

Coleman, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, is a Surfrider Foundation member and on the board of Five Gyres. She’s also the sister of Stuart Coleman, Surfrider’s Hawaii Coordinator.

Coleman emphasized that, as volunteers, “It’s important for us to know that we’re doing the best we can.” Sometimes we get too hard on ourselves and engage in “negative self-talk,” rather than thinking about all the things we can do and are accomplishing.

We also need to make time to be “present in the moment,” Coleman advised, focusing on ourselves and our surroundings in a relaxed and “mindful” way that filters out stress and distractions. To show us what this would feel like, Coleman led the group in a meditation exercise.

Anyone can do it…Just close your eyes, breathe deeply, envision a tranquil beach with breaking waves, palm trees highlighted against the sun…and let your thoughts drift…

Another factor that will reduce volunteer stress, said Coleman, is “good leadership.” Leaders in each chapter need to inspire volunteers and be able to empathize with them. It’s critical for volunteers to know that their work is valued and that their concerns are heard.

In the “Meetings Matter” group Tony Soriano said, “It’s the Chair’s job to cover everything. Look at your agenda. Make sure you allocate time for each point. Everybody’s got passion… and their own story to tell. Make time to talk to Core Volunteers.”

Jeff Coffman and Sarah Damron got together in the “RAP” group and talked strategy. “You need to know your audience – whether it’s a child or a city councilman,” said Coffman, noting that a 7-year-old girl got involved in the beach cleanups.

We touched base with Alan Hopper, Surfrider’s Director of IT, to find out more about effective blogging techniques. His advice: “Cultivate loyal readership, not just numbers.” We definitely agree.

An Open Forum followed, focusing on the resources, tools and services available to get Surfrider’s message out to the public. This was the perfect opportunity for us to tell everyone about our blog SurfWriter Girls.

http://www.surfwritergirls.blogspot.com/

“This hearing is an important opportunity for Surfrider Foundation and it’s members to voice our opinion on important issues — not the least of which is the regulation of ocean desalination.”

From: Surfrider Foundation San Diego Chapter

Desal Update: We will be appealing the San Diego Superior Court’s decision to side with the Regional Water Quality Control Board who decided to allow Poseidon to use an “open ocean intake” for the Carlsbad desalination plant. You can help us by attending a meeting in Costa Mesa on Monday. If you would like to go, email Belinda@surfridersd.org for details, and talking points. It will likely take a few hours out of your day, but the marine life in Carlsbad will be grateful, as will we!

Meeting Location:
Southern California — Monday, Aug. 22, 2011 (10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.)
Southern California Coastal Water Research Project Facility, Main Conference Room
3535 Harbor Blvd., Suite 110, Costa Mesa, CA  92626

From HB/SB Surfrider Chapter:

THE OCEAN IS NOT A PUBLIC DUMP

Facts:
1. The AES once through cooling power generator kills virtually ALL marine life sucked into the intake pipes connected to the power plant, fish, larvae, crustaceans,  EVERYTHING.

2. The AES Plant in Huntington Beach is the 36th largest source of air pollution in California and the largest in Orange County.

3. This plant spews 1,739,937 pounds of pollutants into the air every year, from 177 sources.  It contains 40 different pollutants.

4. 5 TONS of concentrated salt brine along with cleaning solvents and other desalination by-products would be poured back into the ocean every minute of every DAY, 365 days a year, for 30 years!

5. The AES outfall is located in the same area of our ocean in Huntington Beach that is already closed 14% of the year due to ocean pollution.

6. The AES power generator and a proposed desalination plant, straddle the Newport-Inglewood Fault line and are in a Tsunami zone.  This doesn’t make sense.

Once through cooling is archaic, out-dated technology that is being banned.  It needs to stay that way.  We also believe that every site under consideration for a desalination project is unique and needs to be scrutinized on an individual basis.  We support the position of the SWRCB Resolution to phase out once through cooling technology.

Edison Plant HB

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Huntington Beach, CA, the first city in Orange County, decided in a 4-3 vote by the City Council to ban single-use carry-out plastic bags. The ordinance means that retailers cannot give out plastic bags to customers for their purchases.

The decision was made after the City Council listened to concerned citizens on both sides of the issue. There were expert and persuasive testimony presented by Anna Cummins, co-founder of the 5 Gyres Institute. Ms. Cummins stated that, “ The plastics in the ocean form debris fields, known as “gyres.  The 5 Gyres Institute studies solutions to the situation, and says plastics are a tremendous problem, “In the marine environment because plastics are designed to last forever.  They don’t break down, they can’t be digested by marine organisms and kill them” and they persist in the ocean for thousands of years.”  Think about your future “ocean views,” and the image forming is a bit depressing.

Bill Hickman, Regional Coordinator for Southern California Surfrider Foundation pointed out numerous statistics on how current recycling programs fall short by over 90% in the recycling of single-use bags and why banning the bags just like 12 other California cities is the most effective way.

According to City Councilwoman, Connie Boardman, the city council along with local environmental groups such as the Huntington Beach Surfrider Foundation has been studying the issue for one year. The city has been promoting recycling but has determined that the recycling effort is not completely effective as the very light weight bags are easily blown out of trash containers. While only 1% of the waste stream, plastic bags are 25% of the county’s litter.

The ordinance will force retailers to charge customers 10 cents for a bag if they don’t have their own reusable bag. The fee amount was determined by surveying retailers and 10 cents is about the cost of a paper bag to the retailer. Large retailers in Huntington Beach such as Albertson’s are already in the process of switching over to paper and re-usable bags.

When asked why charging a fee instead of encouraging biodegradable bags or compostable bags, Ms. Boardman  gave three reasons why the idea wouldn’t work:

1. This is simply replacing one litter source with another

2. There are no composting facilities in Orange County to properly dispose of the bags

3. Including the bags in recycling material would contaminate untold batches of good recyclable material

Studies have shown that consumers are already paying a hidden fee of about $50 per year by supermarkets increasing the cost of their goods to pay for the bags.

The ordinance is set to take effect sometime in 2012 to give the city staff ample time to study the best way implement the ordinance and the city’s retailers time to exhaust its present inventory of the plastic bags.. The ordinance was modeled after the City of Long Beach’s recently passed ban.

Ban the Bag Meeting

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Photo Credit: Tim Mendez / Tony Soriano

Stay on top of the Ban the Bag issue by signing up for our e-newsletter by clicking here.

News articles on Banning the Plastic Bag in Huntington Beach, CA.

http://articles.hbindependent.com/2011-08-17/news/tn-0818-hbcouncil-20110815_1_plastic-bags-reusable-bags-paper-bags

http://www.surfcityvoice.org/2011/08/hb-city-council-to-consider-plastic-bag-ban/

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Huntington-Beach-City-Council-127754888.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44152694/ns/local_news-los_angeles_ca/t/huntington-beach-council-vote-plastic-bag-ban/

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/orange_county&id=8305947

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/08/huntington-beach-to-ban-plastic-bags.html

http://www.ocregister.com/news/bags-311929-plastic-ban.html

Check out this cool APP for remembering your Reusable Bag when you go to a store: http://www.grab-your-bags.info/

Huntington Beach, CA – Stacey Nelson-Kumar, Albertsons Community/Government Relations Manager, announced, “I’m excited to share the wonderful results of our in-store donation campaign to benefit Surfrider Foundation.” As part of their community involvement, Rick Griffin, District Manager, and Mark Beasley, Store Director for Albertsons in Huntington Beach, awarded the Surfrider Foundation Huntington/Seal Beach Chapter a $5,000 check on Saturday, August 13, at the “Albertsons’ 100 Days of Summer” event.

Albertsons sold little “paper surfboards” to their customers for a donation of one to five dollars in the first 10 days in August. The $5,000 was the total amount of donations from Albertsons’ employees and customers combined with Albertsons’ matching donations..  Beasley said, “Albertsons is really involved in the community so we are doing whatever it takes to keep our beaches clean. We’re going to become bag-less stores real soon. So we’re going to do be using nothing but reusable bags.”

Tony Soriano, Surfrider Foundation HB/SB Chapter Chairman, says, “It’s great to have Albertson’s as a partner advocating to the community to become a part of the ‘global solution.’ We appreciate the consideration from you and the employees of Albertsons Huntington Beach stores for providing Surfrider Foundation – Huntington Beach/Seal Beach Chapter with your kind donation to help and support our mission.”

Seth Matson, HB/SB Chapter Vice Chairman, said that some of the money that was donated will be used to purchase additional reusable bags to give away at Surfrider’s next bag give-away at Albertsons and our beach cleanups in order to get everyone on board.

At the Albertsons’ celebration, there were four Payne Surfboards that were raffled off and the proceeds went to the HB/SB Surfrider Chapter. Richard Payne, who is Albertsons’ Night Closing Manager, personally custom designed and made the surfboards.  Payne said that he likes working at night so that he can go surfing in the daytime. Payne has been surfing for 41 years and has always supported the Surfrider Foundation. When the other store managers asked him what local organization to donate to, Payne said “Surfrider Foundation” without hesitation.

The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s oceans, waves and beaches for all people, through conservation, activism, research and education. Surfrider Foundation now has more than 60,000 members in the USA and 100 chapters worldwide.  International Surfrider Foundation chapters and affiliates have been established in many foreign countries including the Surfrider Foundation Europe (with ongoing programs and Chapters in France, Germany, Spain, Portugal and Italy) as well as Japan, Brazil, and Australia.

Albertsons HB

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Contact:
Sunny Magdaug
(562) 277-5042
Media Representative

Article written/donated by:
Sunny Magdaug & Patti Kishel
SurfWriterGirls
HSB Surfrider – Media Consultants

Blog: http://www.SurfWriterGirls.blogspot.com

Photo Credit: Robert Otoole (Richard Payne photo)