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Surf Club Sustainability & Adaptation Checklist

Why should clubs act?

All surf clubs need to consider urgent action on climate change as it effects the health of members, changes surf conditions and puts club infrastructure at risk. Many club constitutions will demand this or will reflect SLSA’s constitutional objectives which include:

Y) ensure that environmental considerations are taken into account in all surf life saving and related activities conducted by SLSA;

Z) promote the health, safety and welfare of Members and all other users of the aquatic environment;

Sustainability actions

  1. Educate your members – include coastal hazards and climate change concepts in surf life saving training programs
  2. Work out your carbon footprint. You’ll need gas, electrical, water bills and fuel bills to get started. A comprehensive but easy to use calculator is available here
  3. Get Solar PV panels on your roof. It will likely save your club money and there are periodically government grants for such initiatives.
  4. Audit and monitor your electricity usage. Upgrade your electricity meter to give live or frequent updates on usage so you can understand what’s using all that power. Is it the old fridge, the hot halogen globes or the air con? Move to LED lighting and efficient devices.
  5. Waste management – avoid single use plastics, recycle what you can, minimise waste.
  6. Chuck a hashbrown on the barbie – provide more vegetarian options during club catering, as meat has a significant carbon footprint.
  7. Water wise tap and shower fittings – the provision of water consumes a significant amount of energy.
  8. Encourage active transport to the club: have bike racks, publish best public transport routes.
  9. Commit to be carbon neutral by 2030 (or 2025, or now!). Consider offsetting your emissions that are hard to avoid, it’s pretty cheap.
  10. Maximise vegetation around your club – it helps cool the environment, suck up CO2 and sustain sand dunes in the face of storm surges.
  11. Only engage and promote sponsors whose activities are compatible with the Paris Climate Agreement (<1.5˚C warming). Promoting a company that is driving global warming will only harm surf life saving in the long run.
  12. Request SLSA to fast-track specification and development of electric IRBs and ATVs
  13. Promote your sustainability activities to educate and inspire local community action on climate change

Adaptation actions

  1. Heat stress – have clear guidelines on when competition and training should cease due to high ambient temperature. Especially important for pregnant, youngest and oldest members. Consider whether events need to be run earlier in the day when it is cooler.
  2. Heat stress – identify ways of minimising over-heating at the beach: shelter, hydration, fans, appropriate clothing.
  3. Understand the risk to your club facilities – Identify whether your club is built on a sand dune or whether it has rock under the foundations. Consult your local council’s Coastal Hazard Risk Management and Adaption Plan (CHRMAP). Check this 2011 SLSA report for preliminary info, 63% of clubs Australia wide are in ‘zones of potential instability’.
  4. Do you have land to retreat to? Identify whether land further inland is suitable for future club infrastructure (especially if currently built on sand within 40m of storm surge line)
  5. Protecting the clubrooms: Protect sand dunes through revegetation and other activities. Consider whether a sea wall will be required (in short or long term), as has been the case for some clubs already.
  6. Mobile facilities: your next patrol tower might be a better investment if it can be moved, as required.
  7. Financial plan for economic challenges:
    1. club building damage/relocation/adaptation and
    2. reduced revenue due to lower membership/sponsorship as beaches become less appealing, (more rocky and less sand).

Some of these recommendations are sourced from the two SLSA sponsored climate change reports and others from the Climate Council Sporting Club resources.

Got any other suggested actions for surf clubs to prevent and adapt to climate change? Contact us!

  • Electric ATV on patrol?
  • When will we have an electric IRB or jetski?
  • Line in the sand: No future for fossil fuel sponsors in surf lifesaving
  • Socials: Contact and collaborate with us

Sustain.Surf

6 days 14 hours ago

Time to get some electric ATVs on patrols. There are options but Surf Life Saving Australia needs to see if they stand up to testing

Electric ATV on patrol? - Sustain Surf

Electrification of mobility is a essential step in reduction of carbon emissions and will have benefits for surf life saving members and beachgoers. Electric vehicles have much fewer moving parts and less maintenance requirements. An electric ATV will simply be plugged in to a 10 amp power point ove...

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Sustain.Surf

1 month 1 week ago

Over 10 years since Surf Life Saving Australia published a report outlining the risks to surf club infrastructure from climate change. A great report but

Surf clubs under threat from climate change

A report for Surf Lifesaving Australia shows more than half of country's surf lifesaving clubs are being threatened by extreme tides and weather conditions.

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Sustain.Surf

1 month 2 weeks ago

Long time IRB motor supplier Mercury are teasing their new electric outboard. Hot swappable batteries IN the outboard. Wonder if we'll need a reconfigured Thundercat

Mercury Avator Electric Outboard Concept: Inspired Innovation

The Mercury Avator electric outboard concept represents our next step forward in marine innovation, as Mercury progresses toward the formal release of electr...

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Sustain.Surf

1 month 3 weeks ago

This content isn't available right now

This gives some insights into why doing outside physical activity, like surf patrol or beach competition, is dangerous in extreme heat, something becoming more common

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Sustain.Surf

1 month 4 weeks ago

E Class Outboards are making electric outboards and prototyping batteries which could be suitable for an inflatable rescue boat. Once they are ready for testing,

1
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Sustain.Surf

2 months 4 days ago

NASA's 'climate spiral' shows how the Earth is warming

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Sustain.Surf

2 months 2 weeks ago

Photos from The Climate Council's post

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Sustain.Surf

2 months 2 weeks ago

‘Smouldering dumpster fire’: Literary giant Tim Winton pokes the oil and gas bear

Author and environmentalist Tim Winton has used his closing speech at the Perth Festival’s writers weekend to pillory the oil and gas industry for trying to expand instead of winding down.

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Sustain.Surf

2 months 2 weeks ago

Stop Woodside’s Massive Toxic Gas Project Before It’s Too Late

How can we be proud to have this brand on our patrol uniforms and plastered all over our kids? Surf Life Saving WA?

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Sustain.Surf

2 months 3 weeks ago

Photos from The Climate Council's post

Come on people. Let’s start taking this more seriously

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