Fifty percent of the carbon dioxide produced from burning fossil fuels gets absorbed by the ocean and reacts with water to form carbonic acid. This carbonic acid increases the overall acidity of ocean water. There has been a 30 percent increase in acidity in our oceans since the Industrial Revolution.

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We here at Buy Board Shorts know that many states are having to cut back on services but California’s state parks have taken an especially bad beating from Governor Schwarzenegger this past year, with many parks being forced to close along with parking and camping fees shooting sky high!

The California State Parks Association is holding an event this holiday weekend called ‘Stand Up for State Parks’.

Their idea is that the best way to show support for California’s state parks is to go out and visit them! The event will also raise awareness to the fiscal problems the state parks are facing and generate public action for the protection and funding of California’s state parks.

What better time to Stand Up For State Parks than the unofficial start of summer, Memorial Day weekend.

Participation in this event is fun and easy – and can help make a big difference! All you need to do is visit a state park, and then share your experience!

Of course we always advocate wearing a pair of our boardshorts along with a UV protecting shirt such as a rash guard or KoreDry shirt, along with environmentally friendly sunscreen while you’re outside enjoying a hike or swim at your favorite state park. 

A group called Matter of Trust is collaborating with thousands of salons along with groomers, wool farmers, individuals and pet owners throughout the US and abroad, to  donate their  clippings to soak up oil spills. They also accept fur and other “natural fibers” waste wool, alpaca fleece, horse hair, feathers, etc.

You can find out more about this unique program here: http://www.matteroftrust.org/programs/hairmatsinfo.html

Emphasis should be placed on an engaging, entertaining, and informative message on why the breakwater should be removed and waves restored to the shores of Long Beach. Winning submissions will be posted at LBSurfrider.org, YouTube, and screened at the Art Theater in Long Beach on June 19, 2010. $2000 in prizes!

For more info see their website: http://lbsurfrider.org/contest/index.html

That’s why we were thrilled to learn about a project that the 1st graders at Jefferson Elementary School, (Carlsbad, CA), recently completed…

Seems the kids were inspired by a presentation made to them by San Diego Surfrider RAP activist Heather Benson, then guided  by their teacher Arlene Gnade, and local “gARTbage” artist, Teresa Espaniola to spend over 5 months collecting plastic garbage from nearby beaches to create a giant “whale” they named Lil’ Gray.

You can see photos and read about their experiences on their blog.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, (NOAA), has got a terrific program to help fishermen dispose of old, derelict fishing gear AND provide energy in the process!

Their Fishing for Energy program provides fishermen a free place where they can dump their old gear, netting, traps, etc. The gear  is then transported to the nearest Covanta Energy-from-Waste facility.  Approximately one ton of derelict nets equal enough electricity to power one home for 25 days.

As you may know, lost and unused fishing gear and netting that floats around in the the ocean is a major hazard hugely impacting the marine environment. Not only does this stuff never go away, (it’s meant to last in harsh ocean conditions), but it continues to catch and kill fish and other marine life along with posing a navigational hazard!

Huntington Beach, (aka Surf City), is known around the globe for it’s waves and beaches and tomorrow local Surfrider members, (and non-members), will spend a couple of hours doing their part to keep the beach liter free and beautiful – so why not join them?

You can find them at the south side of the Pier near Huntington Street from 8:00am to Noon.

You can even park for free if you enter at the Beach Blvd gate and tell them you’re there to participate in the Surfrider beach clean up. Once you get parked, hit the sand and look for the blue Surfrider Tent at Tower 11. Clean up supplies provided along with service hours of community service proof, if needed.

A study is underway to examine the impact of tidal turbines on marine wildlife. Although the ocean could provide countless amounts of natural energy, there is very little known about the environmental impacts of harnessing such power.

The study in question will be done over three years by a partnership of the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

You can read more here…

We know our customers like to swim, surf and snorkel in our board shorts but please, we beg you, leave the plastic bags at home! It one takes a split second for a bag to blow off your towel and into the water, creating a deadly treat for marine wildlife.

Also a reminder that you can also wear a rash guard shirt while you’re in the water for your SPF protection and forgo the sunscreen. This way you and the coral reefs will be exposed to less of the harmful chemicals they contain, along with the plastic bottles they’re packaged in.

They’re calling for the Fishery to adhere to its legal obligations under the Endangered Species Act because its long line fishing practices captured nearly 1,000 threatened and endangered sea turtles between July 2006 and the end of 2007.

Even though the fishery has far exceeded the number of turtles it is allowed to take under the Endangered Species Act, the Fisheries Service, has declined to close the fishery while it studies options for reducing turtle take, a decision the conservation groups claim is illegal.

“Allowing this fishery to continue to kill threatened and endangered turtles while the government studies the problem is irresponsible and illegal,” said Andrea Treece, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity.

The Gulf of Mexico bottom longline fishery operates primarily off the west coast of Florida, an area that provides key habitat for several sea turtle species, including loggerhead, Kemp’s ridley, and green turtles.

Bottom longliners lay a mainline up to 10 miles long with as many as 2,100 baited hooks. Sea turtles are caught when they attempt to eat the bait or become entangled when swimming near a line.

“The use of longlining in the Gulf of Mexico is tragic. Loggerheads, Kemp’s ridleys and other sea turtles die caught by a fishing method that has no regard for the waste it entails and the death of endangered species,” said Carole Allen, Gulf office director of the Sea Turtle Restoration Project. “It reminds many of us of the slaughter of sea turtles drowning in shrimp trawls before Turtle Excluder Devices were required.

You can read more here…