Volunteers needed for Dive for Earth Day 2010

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Volunteers needed for Dive for Earth Day 2010

Volunteers needed for Dive for Earth Day 2010 – Calling All Divers and Water Enthusiasts!

2010 is the 40^th Anniversary of Earth Day, an international campaign designed to raise environmental awareness on a global scale.

Underwater environments are under numerous threats including pollution, debirs, climate change, overfishing, and coral bleaching. Dive for Earth Day is an extraordinary opportunity to take action and help address the underwater issues that concern you most.

Over the last 10 years, the Project AWARE Foundation have joined this effort to focus attention on aquatic environments, and named this ‘Dive for Earth Day‘.

Why?

With the oceans covering more than 70% of the Earth’s surface and providing habitat for 90% of all life on the planet, one aim is to highlight the issues facing this particular environment, including pollution, debris, climate change, overfishing and coral-bleaching. Human activity is costing the Earth. And despite the oceans’ vast expanse, our marine debris is taking its toll on aquatic eco systems.

You can choose to make a world of difference by joining Scubafish and Narima Diving’s Dive for Earth Day event on 18th April. This is your chance to enjoy a fun day out and help raise environmental awareness on a global scale!!

What?

Dive for Earth Day: Our dive boats will be visiting Ko Haa and Ko Rok, where the staff on board will be conducting Underwater Reef Clean-ups on one dive (to help us identify the general sources of marine debris), and a ReefWatch/Coral Watch monitoring exercise on the other dive. Any of our guests are welcome to join this effort, including snorkellers. We will also be offering an AWARE Fish ID Adventure Dive at no extra cost to anyone who is interested!!!

ReefWatch: Scubafish and Narima Diving, in partnership with Greenfins Thailand and the Phuket Marine Biological Center are bringing ReefWatch, a simple, non-invasive coral reef monitoring method, to divers who are passionate enough to make a difference.
Scubafish and Narima Diving staff will provide a thorough briefing and short presentation on Reefwatch survey techniques, enabling us to collect valuable information to monitor the reef’s health and help us care for the reefs you visit. Volunteer divers can easily learn the method and take part in the programme recording such information as common coral types, visual percentage cover, indicator species, damage and topography of reef and track this information over time.

Marine Biologists and government departments will use the data collected for these dive sites to help answer questions about global coral bleaching and recovery patterns as well as the overall health and risks to Thailand’s coral reefs.
CoralWatch is an organisation who aims to provide a scientific tool which increases awareness about global warming by demonstrating one of its devastating effects. They developed a simple method for the monitoring of coral bleaching, and assessment of coral health.
The Coral Health Chart is basically a series of sample colours, with variation in brightness representing different stages of bleaching/recovery, based on controlled experiments.

In the field, users simply compare colours of corals with colours on the chart and record matching codes. The charts can be used by anyone, and is an ideal way for snorkellers to get involved! It can also be used as a way into the AWARE Coral Reef Conservation Specialty Course.

When and Where?

Meet at Scubafish in Kantiang Bay at 07.45am on Sunday 18th April. Free transfers can be arranged.

Anyone interested is asked to confirm participation before the day. Please contact us to register your interest before 16th April. Thank you for your support, we look forward to seeing you on the 18th April to celebrate Dive for Earth Day.

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