Kitepix Magazine No.5 February - April 2015 | Page 34

Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) is an environmental charity
protecting the UK’s oceans, waves and beaches for all to enjoy
safely and sustainably, via community action, campaigning,
volunteering, conservation, education and scientific research.

help achieve this. We’ll be working with
communities to empower, train and mobilise
over 10,000 coastal volunteers. We’ll be calling
for greater restrictions on the thousands of
sewage discharges our beaches are subjected
to annually. We’ll be demanding better
protection of our coastline from inappropriate
coastal developments that destroy habitats,
waves and wildlife. We’ll take your voice, and
perhaps even you to Parliament as part of our
Protect Our Waves All Party Parliamentary
Group, to call for legislative change and
improved protection for the coastal places
we love and enjoy. We’ll also be launching
our own Surfers Against Sewage manifesto
in the run up to the election – something we
can all lobby our local MPs to support, in our
continued struggle to protect our shores.
Towards the end of the year, we’ll be hosting
the 4th Global Wave Conference, bringing
together the world’s leading enviro-surf NGO’s,

academics, activists, politicians, surf industry
representatives and coastal communities to
promote the global importance of protecting
waves and beaches – and not just for surfers.
We want to protect healthy coastal ecosystems
for everyone. Of course, no anniversary would
be complete without some sort of celebration,
so we are working on ideas for a couple of
fun events where we hope to see you all,
taking place later this year. We hope you’ll
join us on the ride this year – as a volunteer,
an SAS member, a campaigner, a Regional
Rep, a donor, a t-shirt wearer, a social media
sharer – We rely on the support of people
like you, because you enable SAS campaigns,
education and community events to exist.
With you on board, our collective vision of an
ocean free from sewage, plastic and poison
can become a reality. Thank you for being
involved.

Photo courtesy of SAS

S

urfers Against Sewage’s 25th anniversary
year has begun as frenetically as 2014 ended,
with a myriad of exciting environmental
campaigns, plans, partnerships and events
rapidly being confirmed for the year ahead.
Such an auspicious year gives the charity
a wonderful opportunity to celebrate past
successes, however more importantly it
shines the spotlight on the urgent challenges

ahead. Our waves, oceans and beaches
have never been under greater pressure or
threat. We will use our 25th year to create
an even sharper focus on today’s key marine
conservation issues, from marine litter to
climate change, coastal development to
water quality.
We’ll be amplifying our call for a 50%
reduction of UK beach litter by 2020
and building the road map of activity to

Photo courtesy of Andy Hughes