Event

Doi :

Are there any environmental issues that you can actually feel when you are surfing?

Hiroto :

The first thing that catches my attention when I'm surfing is just how much garbage there is in the sea. I often wish the sea was cleaner.

Sari :

There are many different causes for global warming, and as a result the melting of the ice raises the sea level rises as global temperatures increase. I feel like beaches are getting smaller and smaller. This is actually resulting in changes in the surfing environment. "We used to have better waves," is a pet phrase of many surfers (laughs). As a surfer, that is the thing that strikes—and concerns—me the most.

Hiroto :

For example, Ichinomiya Town, Chiba Prefecture, where we live now, used to have many surfing spots where you could check the waves from your car. Now, hardly any of those places are left. Although you can still see the waves from the parking lot of Tsurigasaki Beach, which hosted the Olympics, other local beaches in the area are so thin the waves reach all the way up to where we used to park our cars.

Sari :

I hear you are a surfer too.

Doi :

Actually, I skateboarded and bodyboarded when I was a child, but I always wanted to try surfing. Two years ago, my teenage daughter wanted me to take her to an Instagrammable spot, so we visited Tsurigasaki Beach, which has a torii gate on it. When I saw surfers riding waves there, I thought, "I’,m about to turn 50. If I'm going to try it, now's the time." That was how I started. It was in Chigasaki that I went surfing for the first time, invited by a friend. To be honest, I’ve only surfed about five times since then (laughs). However, I am thinking about doing it more seriously this year. I live in Chiba, so I might as well surf in Chiba.

Sari :

You definitely have to join us! Let's go surfing together.

Doi :

Sure, but let me get good enough to avoid embarrassing myself first (laughs).

Sari :

I didn't know the torii gate at Tsurigasaki Beach was a good Instagram spot! Whether waves are suitable for surfing or not depends on the seabed topography. The ways the topography of Tsurigasaki Beach changes now are different. It's getting worse.

Hiroto :

You may not have noticed when you went to Tsurigasaki Beach, but the beach has low concrete fences at both ends of it and wave-dissipating blocks are buried in the sand in front of these fences. Over 15 years ago, when I just started surfing, these blocks were exposed and we used to play in them. Today, however, they are almost completely covered in sand. I suppose this is because the sea level has risen so much that waves now reach further inland.

Sari :

I feel like something needs to be done to protect the places we love so dearly.

Hiroto :

I suppose the first step would be to learn more about environmental problems, so that we can talk about things we want to do and things we can do. It is essential to learn and build knowledge.

Hiroto :

The beach where I usually surf is strikingly contaminated with microplastic debris. What are possible solutions to this problem?

Doi :

Many people assume that microplastic is caused by plastic littered directly into the ocean and shorelines. In reality, it's mainly caused by inland garbage. Plastic finds its way to the sea through rivers as they are broken into small pieces, and the tiny pieces are blown back inland by the wind. Microplastic accumulates as this process repeats. They are so fine that once they enter the ocean, they will just keep on accumulating as they cannot be removed by beach cleanups. Therefore, the only real solution is to use as little plastic as possible in everyday life. While straws and checkout bags may be the most well-known in reducing plastic waste, many other things, like exfoliating beads in cleansing foams, contain microplastics as well. In a nutshell, the only thing we can do is carefully select what products we choose to use every day. For example, in the United States, the usage of plastic microbeads is strictly restricted, many consumers now avoid using products that use plastic, which, in turn, provides incentives for companies to develop more eco-friendly products. This is a cycle that is gaining momentum. Eventually, the key lies in promoting awareness and education to allow everybody to become aware of this issue and change their spending. However, education alone will take too long because we have to wait for children to grow up. The important thing is that each one of us builds knowledge and shares it with others in daily conversations or raises common awareness of the issue through social media.

Doi :

I have a question for you two. What environmental initiatives are the surfing community engaged in?

Sari :

Beach cleanups have been organized for many years. Various activities are underway to clean beaches. In addition to periodic beach cleanups held by local surfers, it is also popular to conduct cleanups at the end of competitions. Aside from that, recycling surfboards and other surfing equipment is gradually becoming popular as well.

Hiroto :

While the number of surfers who are willing to participate in environmental activities is gradually growing, I am hoping that it will become much more common to do so.

Doi :

Both of you are active abroad. Have you noticed anything about environmental issues through your overseas experiences?

Hiroto :

Of course, people are becoming increasingly conscious of the issues of garbage and plastics overseas as well. I can feel that people in the countries I visit are more conscious about using eco-friendly products than the Japanese. Surfers are more knowledgeable as well.

Doi :

When you go to Hawaii, you see drainage ditch covers messaging "this flows into the ocean from here."

Hiroto :

Yes.

Sari :

In my opinion, environmental awareness tends to be higher in other countries at the individual level because problems are more visible there, which motivates people to take action themselves to stop them. But because the level of sewage treatment technology is so high in Japan, it makes our awareness on ocean pollution less visible. Even so, professional surfers and other people that spend a lot of time in the ocean are fully aware of the changes in the marine environment in Japan. I suppose they are more likely to be motivated to take action against these problems.
I have a question to ask you about the problem of beach litter. The United States and ecologically progressive countries in Europe have cleaner beaches with less litter. Japanese beaches, however, don't even have trash cans. Where do you think this difference comes from?

Doi :

Public trash cans are rare in Japan even in the city. For example, places like Harajuku and Shin-Okubo are littered with takeout food containers. In my opinion, the problem is that Japan counts too much on each person's awareness and conscience, just saying, "Take your trash with you." This is because the Japanese system is designed on the premise that "Japanese people are litter-conscious," in other words, "there couldn't possibly be a litter problem here." For example, littering in Kyoto used to be blamed on foreign tourists. Now that Japan is hardly visited by foreign tourists due to the COVID-19 situation, Kyoto still remains about as littered as before. There is no doubt that European countries are more environmentally conscious. However, from my own experience of doing recycling-related work in the United States, I can say that the average American is not as environmentally conscious, unlike what many Japanese people assume. Of course, people that live on the coast tend to be more conscious than inland people, and they are likely to place greater importance on environmental education. However, their social system acknowledges the problem in the first place and accordingly works to improve the environment to solve the problem.
For example, the local authorities would hold beach cleanups every day in California when I lived there in the past. It was not difficult to find trash cans there either. I believe it is important for Japan to acknowledge the presence of the problem first and then develop a social system to address it.

Sari :

Does that have something to do with garbage separation and treatment methods?

Doi :

I believe Japanese people are the best in the world at segregating their trash. We sort out our trash quite carefully, don't we? We even wash used plastic bottles before putting them out for collection. While separation of household waste is at the highest level in the world, we are supposed to take all of our trash home with us when we have something to throw away outdoors. But, when you visit a tourist destination, you often bring a plastic bottle with you, and buy and eat things on the spot, which will generate trash. It is only natural that some people will not take their trash home with them, which results in litter. We need to acknowledge that this happens and spend resources to fix the problem. However, politicians and authorities do not see the need to spend money on this.

Sari :

They have too much confidence in the discipline of the Japanese people…

Doi :

I do believe that Japanese people are highly disciplined, which is a wonderful thing, the problem is that our country counts too much on it.

Sari :

There are many different environmental problems, such as global warming, which is now becoming more and more serious, and marine microplastic debris, which is adversely affecting marine creatures. What problems do you think require particularly urgent attention?

Doi :

Given that temperatures have already risen and microplastics just keep on increasing, it's difficult to set priorities. One thing I can say is that minor steps each one of us take in our daily lives will lead to major effects. Changing your attitude just a little bit will make a difference, and there are many things you can start doing today.
The three R's are a well-known concept in environmental awareness. They stand for Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Japan maintains very high recycling rates, and relatively high levels of reuse, as many Japanese people use thermoses and refill their shampoo and detergent bottles. As far as reducing waste, aside from raising awareness, there are many things we can do every day. For example, it is important to avoid choosing non-reusable products and select environmentally friendly products. A growing number of surfers now bring their own bottles with them, don't they? In fact, carrying your own water bottle with you has traditionally been common practice in Japan. Choosing to use such products will lead to solutions to environmental problems. For example, when everyone begins to choose a cleansing scrub foam made with natural fibers in place of plastic beads, which I mentioned earlier, that can motivate manufacturers to develop more eco-friendly products, and eventually result in a more environmentally sound society.

Sari :

So, you're saying we can change demand through our choices.