The Big Surf
Surfing and climate change: Meet a surfer
Ben Haworth is the British Junior long board champion and is currently ranked no. 2 in Europe.
How does climate change affect this surfer?
Interview with Ben Haworth
Read
the interview with Ben to find out what he thinks about climate change.
Do you think a changing climate is an important issue for him?
As a surfer, are you worried about global warming?
A little. There are advantages and disadvantages
Have you surfed abroad? Where have you been?
Yes. France, Spain, South Africa, North Africa, Ireland, Canaries.
Is it really necessary for you to travel abroad?
Yes, the surf conditions during the winter make it necessary and many competitions are abroad.
Do you offset your carbon emissions when you travel abroad?
We try to recycle at home.
Would you consider riding a sustainable surfboard made out of balsa wood?
Depends, the main thing is that it has to be suitable for competition, so if it weren’t exactly the same as my contest boards it would adversely affect my performance so in this case no.
Climate change might mean that there are more hurricanes in the Atlantic. Is this a good thing for you?
It depends what affect it has on winds locally, but in theory, yes as it will generate bigger waves.
Does it matter to you if sea temperature increases?
No, its better for us.
Will rising sea levels affect surfing?
Yes, can be both good and bad. It would destroy some existing ‘good’ breaks but create new ones
Find out more at Ben Haworth's website