HAZla por tu Ola, a story of surfing and sustainability

About 30 kilometers north of Trujillo (La Libertad) is Chicama, a place where the air is filled with the spirit of surfing due to its spectacular waves. In 2016, the Chicama wave was legally protected by Law No. 27280 on Breakwaters for Sports Practice, the first of its kind in the world. The wave’s registration was achieved thanks to the mobilization of citizens through the “HAZla por tu Ola” (Make it for your Wave) campaign, organized by Conservamos por Naturaleza of the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law (SPDA) and the National Surfing Federation (FENTA). From 2016 to 2023, 43 waves have been legally protected, and the goal is to prioritize the protection of 100 more by 2030.

Due to its long duration and journey, NASA itself described the Chicama wave as “a dream location for surfers,” making it essential to make it the first legally protected wave in Peru. This required meticulous work: bathymetric information was collected to create the technical file. Only with these studies can a wave be registered in the National Breakwater Registry (Renaro). However, funding is needed to carry out this process, and that’s where HAZla por tu Ola comes in.

As explained in the documentary “A la Mar” (2018), the fight to protect the waves began with what happened at La Herradura (Chorrillos), a beach that lost its incredible waves after construction work (a road). After this, when the construction of the dock at the reef where the Cabo Blanco wave (Piura) begins was announced, surfers began protesting. Despite this, the project went ahead and didn’t improve conditions for the fishermen, but it did lead the Navy to determine which waves should be protected.

Thus, in 2000, Peru became the first country with a Breakwater Law, and since 2013, this law has had a regulation pushed by the Association for the Conservation of Beaches and Waves of Peru (ACOPLO), FENTA, athletes, and environmental conservation groups like Conservamos por Naturaleza of the SPDA. These wave protectors continue working to raise funds to preserve more breakwaters, which are threatened by infrastructure projects that would damage their course.

FENTA has identified breakwaters located on beaches in the Costa Verde, Punta Hermosa, Punta Rocas in Lima, Huanchaco, and Pacasmayo in La Libertad. However, in order to protect them, funding is needed, as there is no government fund. Thanks to the joint work of wave leaders, private sector organizations, and the SPDA, funds are raised every year to create and present files to register these breakwaters in Renaro, thus protecting athletes and communities that depend on tourism, as well as reducing the impact on species that inhabit the area by limiting activities that harm wildlife.

Photo: Pepe Romo