Shark
Feeding BanSeptember 11, 2001
Feeding sharks to entertain scuba divers is dead in Florida. With the
national attention shark attacks have gotten this year, there's no way
the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission could allow the
practice to continue. Last Thursday, it voted for a total ban. To become
law, a final vote is required in November. Dive operators and the industry
were outraged and are threatening legal action if the ban goes through.
However, diving tourism is such a tiny part of the total Florida beach-oriented
tourism, the Commission had no choice but to ban the feeds in light
of larger tourism interests. While the industry argued that officials
had no evidence to prove the shark?feeding dives weren't safe, several
commissioners expressed fear that fed sharks could be conditioned to
associate humans with food, a notion supported by many scientists. The
ban would also extend to other marine animals, including manatees, barracudas,
moray eels and manta rays. According to the International Shark File,
there have been 15 attacks on shark?feeding divers and eight on professional
photographers who used bait to attract sharks. Bob L. Harris, an attorney
representing the companies offering shark?feeding dives, said, "We
will take any legal means we can, including going after the commission
staff." Such an intemperate statement makes one wonder who the
real sharks are. After all, the industry drummed up a very big effort
to support just FOUR Florida operators that feed sharks. It's all part
of the myopic view that the dive industry must defeat any legislation
anywhere that regulates any aspect of diving, despite the impact on
the larger community. For more information, see the Shark Attack File:
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Sharks/ISAF/ISAF.htm
Fish and Wildlife commission: http://www.floridaconservation.org
Florida
Reef Destruction
September 11, 2001
Invasive algae is choking deepwater reefs off Florida's Atlantic coast.
Brian LaPointe, a senior scientist at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution
in Fort Pierce, says, "It's a mess. This algae is forming a thick
mat over the reef and all the organisms that normally grow on the reef,
the sponges, the corals." The light-green Caulerpa brachypus usually
grows in the Pacific. It has been seen in a few small patches in the
Antilles, and in May, LaPointe discovered it in extensive meadows off
Palm Beach County. It may have arrived in Florida from ballast water
discharged by boats, and now thrives, thanks to polluted and nitrogen-rich
water from sewage and runoff. The algae is overtaking good algae eaten
by fish, causing the schools that usually inhabit reefs to move away.
Divers began noticing patches of the harmful algal blooms this year,
along with a resulting drop in fish populations. Scientists have theorized
that sewage pumped into the underground aquifer by way of deep wells
is seeping out along the reefs. (Miami Herald)
DACOR
Console Recall September 11,
2001
DACOR is recalling the 2001 Supreme SPG and SPG consoles because they
may have defective metal fittings on the high-pressure hose. These may
leak or become separated from the hose under normal scuba pressure loads.
The problematic hoses are black with gray lettering and horizontal gray
banding along the entire length. According to Rob Cairns, vice president
of sales and marketing, the problem surfaced in Europe. He says that
there have been no reports of leaking or failing hoses in North America,
and less than 150 regulators have been returned for free dealer hose
replacement in North America. If you bought your console after February
1, 2001, return it to your nearest DACOR dealer for free inspection
and hose replacement, if necessary. For more info, call DACOR at 1-800
323-0463 or visit their website at www.divedacor.com
Hurricane
Season
September 11, 2001
It's bargain season in the Caribbean, but don't overlook the bargains
in Baja Mexico. One such bargain: Cabo San Lucas: Solmar Suites Hotel
offers four nights in a garden view suite with confirmed upgrade to
oceanfront, three complimentary dinners for $202.50 per person based
on double occupancy. Deals are constantly changing for all hotels, so
if you want to take advantage of the high 70, low 80-degree water in
the Sea of Cortez before the water dips into winter 60's, go now. Contact
your dive travel agent or, for the Solmar, visit www.solmar.com
Inzan
in zee Deep
September 11, 2001
We have reported in Undercurrent about the follies of
the Inzan Tiger and the erratic behavior of its owner, Captain Heinz
Buchbinder, who pilots his vessel to Colombia's Malpelo Island. While
we could never recommend joining that boat, it's no longer a choice.
Undercurrent subscriber John M. Andrea (Zurich, Switzerland),
who joined a crazy cruise in April, tell us that the Inzan has since
sunk, with Captain Heinz and his wife barely surviving a fire on board.
Their insurer is investigating the fire, but won't answer our questions
about the cause.
Coiba
No Longer Exploring
September 12, 2001
The Coiba Explorer, which dived the waters of Panama, has closed down
it's operation, reports subscriber Tracy Johnson of Manhattan Beach,
CA. "I made a trip on the Coiba Explorer every year since the dive
part of the operation was started 4 years ago. However, the Coiba Explorer
is being shut down (both fishing and diving), a business decision by
the owner. The Coral Star is now the only live-aboard serving Coiba
Island." Johnson says it was a planned shut down and no one lost
any deposit money.
World
Coral Reefs to Die by 2050? September
11, 2001
"The world's coral reefs will be dead within 50 years because
of global warming, and there is nothing we can do to save them,"
Rupert Ormond, a marine biologist from Glasgow University, told the
British Association for the Advancement of Science conference. "Only
the coral reefs in nontropical regions such as Egypt stand any chance
of lasting beyond 2050," Ormond said, but even the days of the
stunning marine parks of the Red Sea are numbered as sea temperatures
continue to creep up. Scientists agree the world's oceans are now warming
at a rate between 1 and 2 degrees Celsius every 100 years due to the
increased amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which trap the
sun's rays. But even if humans stopped pumping out greenhouse gases
such as carbon dioxide tomorrow, it would still be too late to save
the reefs, Ormond said. "I don't know what can be done, given that
there's a 50 year time lag between trying to limit carbon dioxide levels
and any effect on ocean temperature. We are looking at a gradual running
down of the whole system. Over time, the diversity of coral fish will
die." The only cause for optimism was that new coral reefs could
start to emerge in colder waters such as the North Atlantic Ocean. (Reuters)
Phony
Tank Testing
September 11, 2001
If you took your tank for a hydrostatic testing to Underwater Adventures
in Leesburg, Fla., -- or bought a used tank of unknown origins -- you
may have to do it again. The U.S. Department of Transportation, which
regulates pressurized tanks, has discovered that Underwater Adventures
marked and certified a number of tanks as properly tested, but they
were not. They also marked a number of cylinders with a Retester Identification
Number (RIN) that belongs to another company. Some of these tanks may
have a compromised structural integrity and explode upon filling. Underwater
Adventures failed to keep records of its retests and visual inspections,
so it's impossible to determine the number of cylinders they improperly
tested certified. Anyone who has a tank that has been serviced by Underwater
Adventures -- or, in fact, purchased a used tank -- that is marked with
RIN numbers B095 or B059 and stamped with a retest date after 1986,
should not fill it until properly retested. As you might imagine, the
Feds are investigating Underwater Adventures.
The
Death of a Diving Pioneer
September 11, 2001
Jon Hardy, a diver for 50 years and a past executive director of NAUI,
died August 29 from cancer. Hardy, 62, owned the Argo Diving service,
on Catalina Island, off Los Angeles, and founded and directed Rodale's
Scuba Lab. Hardy was a volunteer crew member for the Catalina Hyperbaric
Chamber. In 1981, he co-founded the annual Avalon Underwater Cleanup,
which has grown to more than 500 volunteer divers. Donations in Hardy's
memory can be sent to the Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber, P.O. Box 5069,
Avalon, CA 90704. A memorial service will be held at 5 p.m. on Sept.
22 at Buena Vista Pointe in Avalon.
-- Ben
Davison,
publisher
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