Transition of Oishi Beach, a surfing competition venue: From pollution to a pillar of town revitalization

During the Asian Games, which are held mainly in Aichi Prefecture from September to October, surfing competitions are held on Oishi Beach in Akabane-cho, Tahara City, Aichi Prefecture, in the central part of the Atsumi Peninsula. In the past, due to the bad behavior of some surfers, surfing was considered ``pollution'' and people avoided it in this area. It has now become a pillar of town revitalization, and international competitions are now held there. It took steady efforts by volunteers to get to this point.

Big waves crash onto the white sand beach with a roaring sound. Also known as Pacific Long Beach. Workers are building fences and lining up container houses in preparation for the actual event from September 25th to 29th (the 29th is a preliminary day).

A faded signboard stands on the road leading to a village right near the venue.

"Residents are inconvenienced and in trouble. Parking is prohibited" "Be considerate"

"In the past, the damage caused by some surfers was really bad. They would enter people's houses without permission, use the toilets, and throw away their filth. There were constant complaints to the government." Koichi Ohba, 67, a local resident and former Akabane Town (now Tahara City) government employee, looks back.

``Let's prevent surfing pollution'' and ``Many problems are occurring.'' In 1980, the town's public relations magazine included an article with the following headline:

"Take your garbage home with you." Around that time, there was a surfer going around the beach calling out to him. Masataka Kato (72). At the time, he lived in Chiryu City. I used to spend over two hours commuting every week. ``If things continue like this, we won't be able to surf in this beautiful ocean in the future,'' he felt a sense of crisis, so he and volunteers began cleaning up the area. I once loaded up my car with more than 20 bags of garbage that I couldn't dispose of. They also patrolled the area before dawn to prevent theft of melons and watermelons.

Ohba-san on the other hand. "Leave me alone...