History

The relationship of Peru and the sea has always been very close. The ancient inhabitants of the coast rode on the waves in totora boats. There are still traces of this love of the sea: in the citadel of Chan Chan (La Libertad), the waves survive time on the walls, while the immortal totora horses remain in the ceramics of the Mochica culture and its heirs, They continue to take the beaches. Even the American writer Ernest Hemingway was enchanted by Cabo Blanco (Piura) and even today, the sea continues to reap national champions and champions in various water sports.

However, there are problems that our ancestors did not have. Now tracks are built that totally change the beaches, as happened with La Herradura, one of the best beaches in Lima, on the so-called Costa Verde. Docks appear without planning, that cut waves and that almost end with the mythical break of Cabo Blanco. It is destroyed without taking into account the natural wealth of space.

In a country with more than 3000 kilometers of coastline, the unpredictable waves were in danger of disorderly urban and economic growth. Thus, in order to protect the best waves in the country for sporting purposes, a group of surfers organized and got the Peruvian State to pass Law No. 27280 in 2000. Peru became the first country in the world to have a legal system to protect its waves. Despite this first effort, the preservation of these natural stages was not yet ensured. It took 13 years for the Rompientes Law to have its Regulations. Thus also appeared the National Registry of Rompientes (Renaro), where the waves that needed this legal protection would be registered.

However, for a wave to be registered in Renaro, it had to go through a process. The regulation states that, for each breaker, a technical file must be submitted to the General Directorate of Captaincy and Coast Guard (Dicapi). The registration cost of each wave fluctuates between 10 thousand and 20 thousand soles, depending on whether the breaker already has bathymetry (study of the seabed) or if one is needed. Neither the State nor the National Sports Federation of Tabla (Fenta) has the necessary funds to make the records of each of the beaches that meet that requirement in Peru. Without file, the waves would remain defenseless before the installation of any infrastructure that modifies its natural course.

Equipo HAZla por tu Ola

En el 2015 se creó Hazla por tu Ola, una campaña de Conservamos por Naturaleza, iniciativa de la Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental (SPDA), y la Federación Nacional de Tabla (Fenta). La estrategia nacional a dos niveles: protección y defensa de las rompientes. La protección busca registrar las olas en el Renaro y es impulsada por HAZla por tu ola; mientras que la prevención y defensa, es monitoreada desde la Comisión de Rompientes.

La Comisión de Rompientes, creada en 2018 por la Fenta, convoca a expertos que se reúnen para defender las olas amenazadas. Además, representa los intereses de los surfistas en negociaciones con las autoridades y el sector privado.

A nivel internacional, trabajamos en alianza con Save The Waves (Estados Unidos) y Fundación Rompientes (Chile) por la protección legal de rompientes. En esa línea, buscamos que más personas se organicen y logran proteger las olas en sus países.