October 2012    Download the Entire Issue (PDF)

Vol. 27, No. 10   What's this?

Diving with Helium May Be Limited

from the October, 2012 issue of Undercurrent  

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Helium, used in Trimix and Heliox, is well liked by deep wreck divers because it's non-explosive, and its low density reduces the work of breathing under pressure. However, it's an expensive gas, and looks like it will become even more so. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported last month that helium is in short supply, and various business that rely on it, from hospitals to balloon shops, report dwindling amounts and increased costs from suppliers.

The U.S. government controls the world's entire supply as a strategic material for military and aerospace development, and much of the country's helium supply (30 percent of the world's supply) is kept in a Texas reservoir that connects to pipelines in Kansas. But according to Congressional testimony last May, that reservoir could run out by 2020. Congress is trying to get private companies to take to helium production, but it's slow going and has resulted in severe price spikes....