A Scuba Diver's Impact On A Coral Reef
Actions Sportdivers Can Take To Preserve The Underwater Environment
Jun 19, 2009
Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority estimates 400,000 to 500,000 dives are undertaken on the Great Barrier Reef each year. If each diver damages one small piece of coral, a lot of the reef is being destroyed.
Caring for the reef makes an enjoyable dive and preserves the reef for the future. There are many ways in which a diver can improve the way he or she interacts with the underwater environment. Buoyancy control and simple respect for the environment are two important ways.
Anchoring The Scuba Dive Boat
If a dive site doesn’t have a permanent anchor point, when ‘tossing the pick’ a scuba divemaster should aim for a wide sandy patch away from the coral.
When below, the anchor should be secured to lessen the impact on the coral; maybe wedging it in a crevice with the chain dragging on an open sand patch. At the end of the dive the anchor can be loosened to make it easy to retrieve.
Buoyancy Control
A diver should remember how much weight for every equipment set-up. Some divers say “I’ll over-weight and add air in my buoyancy compensator”.
All divers are taught correct techniques for buoyancy control, but usually simply forget or couldn’t care less.
It is a common practice for divers to want to peer into the myriad of small caves on a coral reef. There is usually something of interest in each one. It is also common for divers to crash dive onto the reef and lie on top while peering under a ledge.
It is possible to get down close to the reef without touching it using various scuba diving skills.
For tips and hints on buoyancy control refer to Suite 101 article: Scuba Diving Buoyancy Control
The Impact Of Fins On The Underwater Environment
A scuba diver’s fins can have a significant impact on the underwater environment. There are many models offering power with less effort. But do divers really need power? A dive on a coral reef is usually a relaxed, casual swim, not a wild dash along the seafloor.
As divers have different wetsuit combinations, maybe they should also have a ‘quiver’ of fins: powerful fins for a shore entry with a lot of surface swimming; a boat dive might only need small fins; smaller fins for a slow coral reef dive.
Scuba Divers Touching the Marine Environment
This is a debate around how much divers should interact with the marine environment. It is easy for a scuba diver to suffocate coral with sand, stress marine animals, smash off bits of coral. This debate comes back to the sheer number of divers on the reef. The reef could recover from a few divers but if every diver damages a small amount of reef, serious damage can be inflicted.
Cyclone Damage
Some scuba divers argue that a cyclone has more destructive power than a single diver. However, a cyclone is a natural phenomenon. The reef has survived thousands of years of battering by cyclones, but only recently must it deal with the added onslaught of scuba divers.
Often the reef doesn’t get a chance to regrow. Divers entering at the same location on a reef will damage new growth as it forms. Mother Nature helps in a small way, as most of the slow growing corals like the “brain” corals are also difficult to damage. Unfortunately this is not true for the delicate corals like the gorgonian fans.
To prevent damage to the marine environment comes only with knowledge, practice and the desire to conserve the underwater environment for future generations.
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