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Join Mike Golding and take up The Green Blue Challenge

World class Yachtsman, Mike Golding issued his Green Blue challenge to three prominent figures in the boating world on Friday 15 September at the Southampton Boat Show.  

Rod Carr, Chief Executive of the RYA, Dick Durham, Features Editor of Yachting Monthly and Jon Eads, Managing Director of MDL Marinas, accepted the Challenge to ‘Green Up’ their boating activities from Mike in front of the world's marine press.

Mike, regarded as one of the world’s best offshore racing sailors is a champion for the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and British Marine Federation’s (BMF) Green Blue environmental initiative.  The Green Blue provides boaters with practical advice and information to help them think and act in an environmentally conscious way

"When the going gets tough in a solo ocean race” said Mike, “often the way through it is to take it one day at a time. In the same way, all boat owners can make a difference to the environment one step at a time. Each step may not seem like much, or may even seem futile to the individual concerned, but it's amazing how they all add up and what can be achieved".

All three of the prominent boaters identified areas in their boating activity where they could be more environmentally aware and make improvements.

MDL's Jon Eads explained how, as a sailor turned motor boater with a young family, he could do his bit: "We motorboaters get a bad press, whether it be accusations of noise, wash or smoke, so I feel I need to make a special effort to complete this Green Blue Challenge.”

Dick Durham of Yachting Monthly recalled how a young seal had got a plastic beer can holder round its neck and as it grew the plastic got tighter; eventually strangling it.  “Now we know the harm thatseemingly innocent rubbish can cause, there's simply no excuse for throwing anything over the side."

Rod Carr, confessed that he had been guilty in the past of pumping his bilges without checking for anything nasty in them first. "It's too late to say sorry to your neighbours and the environment when the telltale multicoloured oil rings start emanating from your vessel. It's not socially acceptable, let alone environmentally acceptable to pump contaminated water into the sea”

To get them started the three boaters were presented with environmentally conscious goody-bags containing spill-kits, green cleaning products from Ecover, Plastimo binoculars and wildlife spotting charts so they could spot and recordsome of the creatures they were going todo their bit to protect.

The public can take up Mike's Green Blue Challenge, thanks to the 'Environmental Code of Conduct', available from The Green Blue at the RYA stand. This handy sticker can be used by boat owners to proclaim their boat a 'Green Blue Boat' and includes a host of handy environmentally aware tips.