There’s something about the life cycle of a wetsuit and the life it endures that hits the highs and the lows of life. It starts in the cold, salty waters on the bodies of thrill-seeking surfers waiting for te perfect wave. Eventually, the suit wears down, cracks, or loses its warmth, and it’s time to discard it, where it will ultimately end its life in a landfill.
In Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, a local organization is giving those wetsuits a life beyond the landfill, bringing together a whole culture and community of surfers on the East Coast. This new wave in Bridgewater is called The Ark, a nonprofit organization that supports individuals with challenges and provides a platform for supported employment, job training, and programs in health and education.
Their new initiative ventures into the surf world, where they have created a wetsuit program and have started to turn heads in the Canadian surf community for how well it blends environmental action with social good.
Specifically, what they do with the surf community is they collect used or damaged wetsuits from across the province and give them a new life. They take these wetsuits and either repair or repurpose them into new products. The remaining scraps will be shredded and used for various purposes, including as pillow stuffing.
The problem with wetsuits begins with neoprene, the synthetic rubber from which they are made. Neoprene is the hero that keeps the surfer warm in the frigid Atlantic waters, but it is extremely difficult to recycle. They are petroleum-based, non-biodegradable, and can take hundreds of years to break down. Surf brands have begun to experiment with eco-alternatives, such as Yulex, but ultimately, most wetsuits will still end up in landfills, taking hundreds of years to decompose.
This is why The Ark’s mission with repurposing them is so crucial to the surf community. It is a grassroots project that can be a solution to a global surfing problem and further proves that change can start with a small group.
The Ark’s program not only tackles waste but also builds bridges within its initiative to provide employment opportunities for adults with disabilities. Each wetsuit gives these participants a chance to learn new skills and contribute to a shared environmental change mission.
Surfers and environmental lovers across the World can contribute to this beautiful initiative by donating their old wetsuits, spreading the word on The Ark, and repurchasing any repurposed products once they become available. To further get involved, you can visit https://www.thearkbridgewater.org/volunteer and learn more about the program and The Ark as a whole.
Written by Caelan Foye
