Surfrider Foundation

The annual Surfrider Foundation Celebrity Surf Jam wiped out this year. The event, scheduled for Saturday at the south side of the Huntington Beach Pier, has been canceled. Matt McClain, director of marketing and communications for Surfrider Foundation, said Monday that several factors led to the cancellation of the event, which was entering its third year. "The individual issues weren't that big, but it was a cumulation of things that led to us having to put off the event," McClain said.

For Brandon Boyd, riding well on a swell is like hitting a high note just right. The 29-year-old Los Angeles resident and lead singer of the band Incubus was singing the praises of the high surf that rolled in on the south side of the Huntington Beach Pier Sunday, the site of the first Surfrider Foundation Celebrity Surf Jam. Boyd also praised the event, which raised awareness and support for the protection of...

Grab a board and head to the beach for Surfboards in the Sand on Sept. 19. The event is being held to celebrate surf culture and the preservation of the ocean. Participants will have their pictures taken on the beach with Peter ?P.T.? Townend ? the first world champion professional surfer. The photographs will be published in TransWorld SURF magazine. There will be live musical entertainment, celebrity autograph signings, giveaways and participants get a Rip Curl T-shirt and a year subscription to TransWorld SURF magazine.

The California Coastal Commission on Tuesday approved a plan to restore the wetlands of Bolsa Chica by digging a channel across the state beach. The $100-million proposal to revive the 1,200 acres has received a warm welcome from most environmentalists, who insist that opening the area up to the ocean is the only way to restore grasses and help the wetlands flourish. A notable exception has been members of the Surfrider Foundation, who have questioned how the beach could be protected from runoff and pollution coming from the inlet and wondered about the effects of any jetties built to border the channel.

Huntington Beach local Jeff Deffenbaugh was happy to surf his home break Saturday for the Surfrider Foundation's second annual Celebrity Surf Jam on the south side of the pier. Despite inconsistent surf conditions, the message remained the same ? protect and preserve the ocean and beaches. "In Huntington Beach, we deal with a lot of water-quality issues," Deffenbaugh said. "I just really want Surfrider to succeed in spreading its message." That was the goal of the day's events, which brought together actors, musicians, TV hosts, activists and professional surfers to battle for the winning spot in The Game, a new take on surf competitions focused on a team effort created by big-wave rider Brad Gerlach.

Wetland inlet not affecting public health In October of this year I attended the Headwaters to Ocean Conference in Long Beach as did Don Schulz. The final session of the conference was: Bolsa Chica Wetlands Restoration Project-One Year Later. The speakers were Robb Sloop of Moffatt & Nichol, Rick Wilson of Surfrider Foundation, Douglas Moore of the OC Public Health Laboratory and David Carlberg from the Bolsa Chica Conservancy. The conclusion that all four of these well-respected participants came to is that the opening of the new inlet has been an overwhelming success.

Quick, what do the following items have in common: (a) dead fish, (b) motorcycle parts, (c) syringes, (d) a mattress and (e) an entire sofa? Answer: They’re all things Tony Soriano has fished out of the water while cleaning the shoreline around Huntington Beach. The Huntington Beach resident, who serves as treasurer and fundraising director for the local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, has spent years on the beach with crews of volunteers, trying to clear as much debris as he can. This Saturday, he’ll be joining another cleanup — maybe a bigger one than usual — as part of International Surfing Day, and he’s prepared for just about anything that his glove dredges up. “I went skiing this past winter, and when you’re parking on the side of the road there, there’s so much debris,” Soriano said.

Opponents of the proposed Poseidon seawater desalination plant said they'll continue to fight the project, despite a judge's ruling this week rejecting an environmental challenge. Orange County Superior Court Judge David C. Velasquez on Monday rejected a lawsuit the Sierra Club and the Surfrider Foundation filed against the city of Huntington Beach challenging the environmental report on the plant. The City Council approved the report in September 2005 and granted permits for the project in March.

The surf is always "up" in Newport. Recently, the protectors of the surf gathered for the 16th annual Waterman's Ball held at the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort & Spa. Sponsored by the Surf Industry Manufacturers Assn., the event attracted a large and diverse gathering of folks under the chairmanship of Paul Naude of Billabong USA. Quiksilver chief executive Bob McKnight was front and center, as were Newport residents Shelley and Bob Hurley, founders of Hurley International.

Philanthropy - and its positive impact on business - was the focus of this year's Coastline Community College Foundation luncheon, where innovators shared the art of making money while serving a greater good. Wing Lam, co-founder and partner of Wahoo's Fish Taco, Susan Samueli, co-founder of the Samueli Foundation, and Shaheen Sadeghi, president and chief executive of the Lab Holding, LLC participated in a panel during the college foundation's 2012 Visionary Luncheon on March 23 at the Westin South Coast Plaza.

Grab a board and head to the beach for Surfboards in the Sand on Sept. 19. The event is being held to celebrate surf culture and the preservation of the ocean. Participants will have their pictures taken on the beach with Peter ?P.T.? Townend ? the first world champion professional surfer. The photographs will be published in TransWorld SURF magazine. There will be live musical entertainment, celebrity autograph signings, giveaways and participants get a Rip Curl T-shirt and a year subscription to TransWorld SURF magazine.

Quick, what do the following items have in common: (a) dead fish, (b) motorcycle parts, (c) syringes, (d) a mattress and (e) an entire sofa? Answer: They’re all things Tony Soriano has fished out of the water while cleaning the shoreline around Huntington Beach. The Huntington Beach resident, who serves as treasurer and fundraising director for the local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, has spent years on the beach with crews of volunteers, trying to clear as much debris as he can. This Saturday, he’ll be joining another cleanup — maybe a bigger one than usual — as part of International Surfing Day, and he’s prepared for just about anything that his glove dredges up. “I went skiing this past winter, and when you’re parking on the side of the road there, there’s so much debris,” Soriano said.

Another big day in the life of Mike Fisher, the Huntington Beach High School Surf Team member, who last year in September was diagnosed with stage three brain cancer. This particular morning started for the ?Fish Man? at Malibu Beach in Los Angeles at Duke?s restaurant at 6 a.m. as they prepared for a stand-up paddle journey down the coast, 50 miles, to Duke?s in Huntington Beach. A minor problem occurred as one of the boats that was to escort the crew broke down and was replaced by a bigger one. So official start time was now 9 a.m., with sunny skies, pretty, glassy conditions and water temperature a cozy 64 degrees.

Wetland inlet not affecting public health In October of this year I attended the Headwaters to Ocean Conference in Long Beach as did Don Schulz. The final session of the conference was: Bolsa Chica Wetlands Restoration Project-One Year Later. The speakers were Robb Sloop of Moffatt & Nichol, Rick Wilson of Surfrider Foundation, Douglas Moore of the OC Public Health Laboratory and David Carlberg from the Bolsa Chica Conservancy. The conclusion that all four of these well-respected participants came to is that the opening of the new inlet has been an overwhelming success.

Here in Surf City, we honor all things wave-related. First there are the waves themselves, that break along eight miles of open-sand beaches, waves that bowl, curl, hollow, closeout, peak and fire. We've got a surf city diner, a surf city bank, a surf theater. We've got surf shops, surfboard shapers, surf museums and surfers. And we've got surfboard artists. They're a breed apart from board riders whose art is carving up the waves. The board is their art. On Saturday, one of two vans traversing the California Coast for the Togo's Surf Art Tour will be parked along Beach Boulevard just south of Heil Avenue.

The annual Surfrider Foundation Celebrity Surf Jam wiped out this year. The event, scheduled for Saturday at the south side of the Huntington Beach Pier, has been canceled. Matt McClain, director of marketing and communications for Surfrider Foundation, said Monday that several factors led to the cancellation of the event, which was entering its third year. "The individual issues weren't that big, but it was a cumulation of things that led to us having to put off the event," McClain said.

Opponents of the proposed Poseidon seawater desalination plant said they'll continue to fight the project, despite a judge's ruling this week rejecting an environmental challenge. Orange County Superior Court Judge David C. Velasquez on Monday rejected a lawsuit the Sierra Club and the Surfrider Foundation filed against the city of Huntington Beach challenging the environmental report on the plant. The City Council approved the report in September 2005 and granted permits for the project in March.