Wetsuits are great. They are an essential part of any water lover's gear to stay warm, protected and increase our ability to be in the water year round. But when you are done with them it can be tricky to figure out what to do next. Wetsuits in landfills are not a sustainable solution. Learn more about what super brand RipCurl is doing with global recycling leader TerraCycle, to launch a radical new Wetsuit Recycling Program across the United States, Portugal, France, Spain and Australia. Now surfers across the globe can recycle any surf branded wetsuit at participating Rip Curl stores.

 

For the estimated 1.5 million college students descending on coastal towns for Spring Break this year, wetsuits will be almost as essential as sunglasses and sunscreen. Leading surf brand, Rip Curl, along with TerraCycle, a company that specializes in the collection and repurposing of complex waste streams worldwide, are calling on surfers of any age to recycle their well-used wetsuits through the ‘Recycle Your Wetsuit’ program before they dive into Spring Break. 

Available to surfers throughout the United States, Australia, France, Portugal and Spain, the program encourages consumers to either mail in or drop off their old, discarded wetsuits, from any brand, for recycling at participating Rip Curl store locations. 

“As a certifiied B-Corp, Rip Curl is committed to sustainably-minded operational advancements,” says Rip Curl North America’s VP of Marketing, PJ Connell. “Our partnership with TerraCycle is a strong step forward in our mission for greater sustainable practices and something that surfers of all skill sets can take advantage of as the program picks up momentum globally.”

Since wetsuits are made from complex materials that are difficult to recycle, Rip Curl partnered with TerraCycle to establish a responsible end-of-life solution to ensure they do not go into landfills.  Instead, the collected wetsuits are broken down into fibrous material and the collected neoprene rubber is then repurposed for use in applications such as safety matting in playgrounds and outdoor gyms. 

“Most surfing wetsuits are made from synthetic rubber, a complex material that’s hard to repair and even more difficult to recycle,” said Tom Szaky, Founder and CEO of TerraCycle. “Through the Recycle Your Wetsuit recycling program. we are providing a new use for this material and offering consumers the opportunity to think twice about what they would otherwise throw away.”

If you're in the United States, you can mail your wetsuit to:

RIP CURL, WETSUIT RECYCLING, 
193 Avenida La Pata, San Clemente, CA 92673

Your wetsuits don't need to be cleaned but they can't be dripping with salt water either so please make sure they have time to dry off before shipping!

For more information about the initiative, visit www.ripcurl.com. To learn more about TerraCycle and its innovative recycling solutions, visit www.terracycle.com. 

About Rip Curl

Rip Curl is a company for, and about, the crew on The Search. The Search is the driving force that led to the creation of Rip Curl, and it lives in the spirit of everything the Rip Curl crew do. It's what makes Rip Curl unique. It defines who we are. The products we make, the events we run, the riders we support and the people we reach globally, are all a part of that Search that Rip Curl is on.

https://www.ripcurl.com/us/explore/about.html

About TerraCycle
TerraCycle is an international leader in innovative sustainability solutions, creating and operating first-of-their-kind platforms in recycling, recycled materials, and reuse. Across 21 countries, TerraCycle is on a mission to rethink waste and develop practical solutions for today’s complex waste challenges. The company engages an expansive multi-stakeholder community across a wide range of accessible programs, from Fortune 500 companies to schools and individuals. To learn more about TerraCycle and join them on their journey to move the world from a linear economy to a circular one, please visit.www.terracycle.com. 

Thank you Ripcurl and TerraCycle for stepping up the efforts around sustainability and offering all of us a solution to discarding those old, used wetsuits.  I plan on dropping mine in the mail... today!