COVER STORY Diving With Parguera Divers in Puerto Rico: If It's So Good, Why Isn't It a Major Dive Destination? There are plenty of good things about Parguera, a small fishing village turned resort village in southwestern Puerto Rico. Given the cheap prices, and over 20 miles of walls to dive, why aren't divers heading here in droves?   Diving Western Australia's True North: It's More Than Just Skurfing, Whale Sharks, and Waterfalls From Sydney, Australia's west coast is a five-hour cross-country flight. It's the quintessential Wild West, wide open and barely disturbed by humans, a place where emus and kangaroos are the biggest travel hazards. The water between Exmouth and Broome is croc-free and temperate ... and home to Rowley Shoals and the True North ... The New True North The new True North is hardly small and rustic: the 114' vessel is fully air-conditioned and features all the big-boat amenities. There's even a helicopter on board. Scuba Figures More interesting than the scuba figure a beer gut cuts in a Lycra wetsuit, the National Sporting Goods Association figures break down some demographics on the 2.3 million Americans who dived in 1997. Nikon SB-103 Strobe: Slow Repairs and Stolen Units Though Nikon's SB-103 recall is progressing, production of SB-105s isn't keeping up with the number of units sent in for replacement. On top of that, some of the recalled SB-103s, which Nikon disposed of after drilling a hole through them, seem to have found their way back into consumers' hands. No Bad Weather Refunds Little Cayman Diver II's strict no-refunds policy upset some divers who vacationed in the wake of Hurricane Mitch last year. Dive consumers need to take steps to protect themselves, especially during hurricane season. High Pressure Rusting: A Problem With High-Pressure Steel Tanks? Cozumel's Aldora Divers had some problems with its high-pressure steel tanks last year when a diver in a swimthrough suddenly found himself unable to draw any air. Although Aldora's divemaster helped him ascend and get back to the boat, they found that his regulator was completely clogged with rust from Aldora's tank, a tank that had been inspected only two months earlier. Given the rapid oxidation that can occur in tropical temperatures, even a little water inside a tank can be the start of a serious rust problem. When are tanks likely to take on water, and what can dive operators and divers themselves do to make sure their tanks stay rust-free? Get the full story. The Simple Hammer Test Looking for a simple way to determine whether a steel tank is rust-free? The Compressed Gas Association still recommends an old-time method, the hammer test. Ombudsman: Nekton 2000 Buoyancy Compensator Reader Bill Dognin liked his Nekton 2000 buoyancy compensator until, during the course of his sixtieth dive or so, the integrated weight pouches fell out of the BC. International Divers, the manufacturer of the Nekton 2000, experienced enough problems that they redesigned the unit. Owners of a Nekton 2000 should call 800-257-2822 to obtain information about how to have their BCs upgraded. The Politically Correct Guide to Eating Fish Did you know that for each pound of shrimp sold, an average of seven pounds of other sea creatures was killed and thrown overboard? Or that many of the sharks caught for $90-a-bowl shark-fin soup are killed for their fins and discarded? Carl Safina's Song for a Blue Ocean pinpoints numerous threats to marine ecosystems, and a chart he prepared for Audubon offers some advice about which fish to eat to avoid being part of the problem. The chart ranks populations from those that are abundant to those that are endangered and considers species' current status, its management history, and ancillary bycatch or habitat concerns to help consumers decide which fish to order for dinner and which to shun. Report on the Dive Industry The Diving Equipment and Marketing Association's primary goal is to help the industry grow, and last August they asked the consulting firm of Bulldog Drummond to create a plan that would help them do just that. The firm has prepared a report that delineates a host of reasons why it thinks the diving industry is a mess. Flotsam & Jetsam A Florida boat is hijacked by a "sea monster" and a diver Ben met in Montserrat a few years back becomes the subject of a major film, the British frigate that was sent to round up the Bounty mutineers is excavated, and an increasing number of airport security devices pose a danger to unprocessed film, and how divers over 59 can obtain travel discounts, are all covered in this month's flotsam. And for any readers who had letters to Undercurrent "returned to sender" during a recent mix-up at the post office, we want to let you know that we're still here.