National day of action against sewage to take place in Hastings on May 17

The Surfers Against Sewage Paddle-Out Protests are being held across the UK all on the same date, but the timings do vary. The one locally is being organised by Plastic free Hastings coordinator Amanda Jobson, along with Colin Darbyshire in partnership with the Clean Water Action group.

Amanda Jobson said: "All over the UK, coastal communities are taking to our waters to paddle-out to share messages on protecting and conserving our seas, which are essential to marine life and our community."

For 35 years now, Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) have been campaigning to keep our coastlines clean, initially as a response from the surfing community who back then found themselves swimming with raw sewage, among other things that were flushed down the toilet. Sadly, we are still dealing with those same issues now. SAS started in St. Agnes and Porthtowan, Cornwall, back in 1990 and on their website say: "What started as a local uprising is now a vital community of nationwide Ocean Activists fighting to see the ocean thrive."

The last Paddle-Out Protest in Hastings was held on May 18 2024.

Surfers Against Sewage has grown into one of the UK’s most successful marine conservation and campaigning charities and say: "For people to thrive and live life to the fullest, the ocean must thrive too. And so we need to confront all that threatens it. We are a campaigning charity made up of water lovers who protect the ocean and all it makes possible. We take action on the ground that triggers change at the top. Action from the beachfront, to the front-bench. Through our innovative and ambitious campaigning and education programmes, we’re building a community that cares deeply about the planet we live on. That cares passionately about the ocean. And that knows the difference people power can really make. The heritage of our organisation is anchored in the ocean. Yet our reach and influence now permeates communities and institutions nationwide."

The full list of Paddle-Out events can be found here: https://www.sas.org.uk/water-quality/our-water-quality-campaigns/paddleoutprotest/