Extreme Sailing Series - Lisbon joins the race to restore ocean health

by Extreme Sailing Series™ on 27 Sep 2016 Extreme Sailing Series™ organiser OC Sport is proud to announce that they have joined the race to restore ocean health with Sailors for the Sea’s Clean Regattas programme.

Clean Regattas is a certification system that enables sailors to protect their local waters with 25 best practices that make sustainability approachable and easy. This programme is an effort by Sailors for the Sea to raise the bar for environmental sustainability and ocean health around the world, and the Extreme Sailing Series will join the initiative at the Lisbon Act, starting on the October 6th.

David Rockefeller Jr., Founder and Chairman of Sailors for the Sea commented: “Sailors for the Sea is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the management of the Extreme Sailing Series to make the Lisbon stopover a certified Clean Regatta, and we look forward to working with them to make the entire 2017 circuit certified also.”

The Lisbon Act will be the penultimate event on the 2016 global tour, and the first time the award-winning Stadium Racing series has raced in Portugal’s capital city.

Event Director Andy Tourell said the Extreme Sailing Series is committed to making a difference. “We’re always mindful of the impact of the Series on the environment, and we are delighted to work with sailors of the sea for the Lisbon Act. This partnership will provide an invaluable audit of our current practices to help us achieving our ambition of becoming even more sustainable.”

The ocean is in crisis. Every year, eight million metric tons of plastic enters the ocean from land and 40% of the oceans are heavily affected by human activity, including pollution, overfishing and destructive fishing practices, and the loss of coastal habitats.

The Extreme Sailing Series Act 7 Lisbon will undertake several efforts in their Clean Regattas campaign, including:

• Assembling a Green Team through the Series local volunteer programme.
• Water bottle reduction and water refilling stations including providing reusable sports bottles.
• Paperless event management including electronic registration, E-tickets, and TV screens to display key information throughout the event site.
• Recycling efforts alongside the city council.
• Alternative transport, where-by all event staff will carpool, walk or cycle around the city. Visitors will also be encouraged to walk or cycle when coming to visit the event.

For more information on the Extreme Sailing Series, and to find out about joining the ‘Green Team’ as a volunteer in Lisbon, email volunteers@ocsport.com or click here.