Sailors for the Sea, the international “Green Boating” support organisation, has awarded Howth Yacht Club’s very successful Wave Regatta 2018 – staged from June 1st to 3rd – their Gold Certificate in enthusiastic recognition of the special efforts made by the Organising Committee to encourage recognition of environmental needs and awareness in every possible way before, during and since the event.

It is rare for a complex event on this scale to receive the top award. But Sailors for the Sea were particularly impressed by the way the Brian Turvey-chaired main Committee and the various sub-committees worked in their different and sometimes potentially conflicting areas towards the shared goal.

Sailors for the Sea highlight a wide variety of initiatives large and small undertaken in Howth which significantly contributed to the greater good - everything from the installation of bicycle racks through the provision of drinking water dispensers and the use of reusable water containers, paper straws, energy conservation, online forms, recyclable drinks and coffee containers, the promotion of public transport and ferry, implementation of Word Sailing Rule 55, recyclable food containers, and the elimination of all unnecessary plastic.

"the Gold Certificate award to Wave Regatta is a timely reminder that the enormous task of cleansing our world is only beginning"

It is only since the Wave Regatta concluded that the international Turn the Tide on Plastics movement has gained real traction as a tsunami of frightening images from the world’s most polluted areas has hit screens across the planet, and the Gold Certificate award to Wave Regatta is a timely reminder that the enormous task of cleansing our world is only beginning.