Finding Gold in Ireland - Sailors for the Sea

Finding Gold in Ireland

 May 21, 2014  | By: Oceana

Last weekend the 2014 International Moth Irish Open (nicknamed the Maymoth regatta) was held at Howth Yacht Club marking the third Clean Regatta held in the Emerald Isle! Wind was light on Saturday but picked up to 20 kts. on Sunday giving sailors lots of breeze to compete with on the final day.

Irish moth sailors in breeze
Irish moth sailors give it a go in some breeze!

Race organizer and Honorary Sailing Secretary for the Howth Yacht Club, Emmet Dalton sent us a great report about how they reduced their environmental impact.

“The moth sailors are a willing audience,” notes Dalton. “When it came to helping with Clean Regattas, their biggest challenge was keeping their onshore maintenance area free from washing into the water.”  

Some of the highlights from the regatta included:

  • Reducing their waste stream by recycling 1/3 of all their waste.
  • Eliminating chemical runoff from boat soaps by requiring water only wash downs
  • Eliminating the need for printed documents by putting all race notices online
  • Preventing 61 single use water bottles from entering the waste stream by switching to reusable water bottles!
  • Achieved gold level Clean Regattas certification!

Additionally, race organizers are estimating the events carbon footprint and plan to put a percentage of the regatta entry fees toward carbon offsets. With only six sailors and a race committee, their footprint should not be very large, but it is great to way to show that carbon offsetting is not just for large events like the America’s Cup or the Atlantic Cup. Every effort made to be carbon neutral adds up! 

rules of racing with environmental responsibility
Race organizers added an Environmental Responsibility section to the Notice of Race.