HANDS ACROSS THE SAND

AND SURFRIDER BEACH CLEANUPS ON SAT., 5/16/15

Surf News Network Honolulu, Hawaii (May 12, 2015):  The Surfrider Foundation’s Oahu, Maui, Kona and Hilo Chapters will be hosting Hands Across the Sand events and beach cleanups across the state on Sat., May 16^th.  The events will feature speakers, food and networking.  At noon, participants will join hands and form a long line in the sand to protest dirty fossil fuels and new offshore oil drilling and to promote clean, renewable energy.

Established after BP’s disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Hands Across the Sand events are held each year at beaches and coastal areas across the country and around the world. “I founded Hands Across the Sand to bring organizations and individuals together to send a powerful message to leaders that expanding oil drilling in our oceans is a dirty, dangerous endeavor,” says Dave Rauschkolb, the founder.

Just five years after the nation’s worst oil spill, the government is trying to do more offshore drilling off the Mid-Atlantic Coast.  New offshore oil drilling and seismic testing pollute our oceans and harm marine wildlife, including whales, dolphins and fish populations. “Yet the environmental impacts are only part of the story,” says Pete Stauffer, Surfrider’s Environmental Director. “The BP spill wreaked economic havoc on the five states bordering the Gulf.” A massive oil spill would devastate the livelihoods of all those who work in these popular coastal areas.

As part of Surfrider’s #NotTheAnswer campaign, chapter activists and other groups are fighting against new offshore drilling and seismic testing.  More than 25 chapters will be hosting events around the country.  In Hawaii, Surfrider will be sponsoring beach cleanups and HANDS events at the following locations:

Oahu Chapter:  Queen’s Surf Beach (Public’s),  across from Kapiolani Park in Waikiki, from 9:30-12:30, with food and prizes provided by Bubble Shack Hawaii.

Maui Chapter:  DT Flemings Beach, Kapalua, Lahaina, Maui, from 9:00-12:00, with Mālama Maui Nui, Barefoot Wine and Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Futures Society/Ambassadors of the Environment, who will provide lunch.

Kona Chapter:  Kohanaiki Beach (Pine Trees), Kona, Hawaii, part of the Keiki Surf for the Earth Contest, all day.

Hilo Chapter:  Bayfront Beach, Hilo, Hawaii, from 10:00-1:00, with prizes from Hurly, Vans, Ocean Minded and photographer Demian Barrios.

These Hands Across the Hands events will highlight Hawaii’s dependence on imported oil (over 90%) and its crippling costs ($5-7 billion per year).  The good news is that the state legislature just passed the nation’s first 100% renewable energy requirement (House Bill 623). But the Hawaiian Energy Company may be taken over by NextEra, who may swap imported oil for imported Liquified Natural Gas. So the state faces a critical choice:  Dependence on Oil (or natural gas) or Energy Independence. The choice is ours.  To learn more about Surfrider Foundation and our Hands Across the Sand events, go to: http://www.surfrider.org or www.HandsAcrossTheSand.org.