Video: Surfer Fined for Digging Standing Wave in Laguna Beach

Surfers and skimboarders are embroiled in a battle with the city of Laguna Beach.

The issue in question? Aliso Beach, a popular skimboarding wave and occasional heavy shorebreak spot for surfers, and particularly, the creek along the sand that creates a standing wave when it breaks – naturally or by human intervention.

But the city doesn’t want surfers or skimmers digging out the creek. So much so that they’re issuing citations for it. Hence the below.

“What’s this citation for?” Greg Viviani, aka SoLagLocal, says in the video above.

“Digging a hole,” replies the officer.

One commenter on the video, sarcastically, wrote:

"Do they also give tickets for sand castles?!"

In response to city intervention regarding the creek, the standing wave, and digging out the channel for the water to flow, Viviani and local activists have created a petition. “Stop useless laws about Aliso Creek!” the petition states.

Here’s more:

“Laguna Beach City Council is trying to make it a law to be illegal for board riders or the public to dig out the sand berm in order to make a wave to ride or sandbar.

“They are saying it is Polluting the Ocean. The digging of the sand berm is something that is going to happen regardless either by the city public works or more often than not by natural causes. This breaking of the berm by humans is literally expediting the inevitable as stated earlier.

Related: Massive River Wave Forms After Lagoon Bursts in Orange County (Video)

“And one would think that the longer the creek stays stagnant and not flowing the more chances of bacteria build up and little kids playing in that bacteria filled water will happen.

“This regulation being drafted by Laguna Beach City Council will be useless and a waste of local resources and money.”

This is a developing story; stay tuned.

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