Surfers in Ireland are today rejoicing, after scoring a sound victory against big developers who wanted to construct a marina over their surf spot. The fight has been going on for years, but this appears to be the final nail in the coffin for a boat harbor in the small coastal town and surfing mecca of Donegal. Over the past few months, the Irish Surfing Association has been lobbying hard to stop the most recent proposal, which had won initial approval by the Town Council.

Surfers waged a long, uphill battle trying to convince the Council that a surf spot was worth more financially than a small boat harbor.They managed to garner support from numerous business people in the town who depend on surf-tourism: once again, showing that good surf can bring in big dollars.

According to Richie Fitzgerald, owner of Bundoran's Beach World Surf Shop, the most difficult argument was in convincing the politicians that surfers actually spend travel dollars. Often labeled as "barefoot tourists," surfers are frequently mischaracterized as being excessively thrifty travelers. But testimony from many of the town's hotel and restaurant owners, who have seen a dramatic rise in profits since the promotion of Ireland's surf, convinced council members that surfing brings economic boons to the region.

We at Save The Waves hope this will be a lesson to other countries with similar development proposals, and similar attitudes towards surfers and their spending habits. A special thanks to all who helped us get the word out about Bundoran's surf!