Surf's up? How does water quality risk impact surfer decisions?

In our research we surveyed 291 surfers and conducted 20 interviews with gatekeepers in the surfing community in the Gulf of Maine. We found that given the level of environmental exposure coupled with a strong sense of environmental sustainability within the local surfing community, Maine and New Hampshire surfers provide valuable insight on issues of water quality. We find that surfers indicate that water quality and pollution can impact an individual's decision to surf. Given this, surfers should have equal accesses to water quality information at their local surf spots. Surfer's knowledge can prove useful to researchers and help drive policy changes related to water quality management.