Today was day three in our conservation education where we performed our second dive in roughly 3-4 meter water located in shark bay. Today’s task was trash collection. During yesterday’s dive, Kristen brought a good point to light when she remarked that with the large efforts in coral and marine life conservation one would think that trash collection and proper disposal would also be a priority on this particular part of the island. This came up when we took the initial journey to the site where we would make our way out to the dive boat. Along what seemed to be one thousand stairs leading to the area we would meet the small motor boat for transportation there is heaps of trash everywhere. Our team leader, Spencer, remarked that the large majority of the islands population were Burmese immigrants trying to make enough money to send back to their families in Burma where economic conditions are poor, and that they were more driven to respect and consider marine efforts due to the prevalent fishing trade than trash disposal on land. He did say that on certain days such as earth day and a few others, the team does try to orchestrate mass collections in the area but unfortunately these infrequent attempts do little to clean up the area. Seeing this, really speaks to the difficulties that these areas face on a day to day basis.
Another person worth mentioning in the team here is a 20 year old Burmese dive hand that New Heaven employs. He was originally sold into the slave trade for fishing boat hands on the island. Ironically, the fishing trade here is incredibly detrimental to the efforts we are here to help, marine conservation. Now, given the awesome team here at Dive Heaven, they were able to pick him up to assist in shop duties and boat duties. Seeing him work is inspiring to say the least. Every thing he does is done well and with a smile. I would expect he is genuinely thankful to have such an opportunity to escape the alternative.. On this note, there are many just like him on the island that perform jobs we back in the States would deem below us with nothing but a smile. I definitely plan on observing this more. It really fascinates me and depresses me at the same time. Why do we make life so incredibly complicated? There is a beautiful simplicity to the everyday strides on this small little island that encourages both therapy and rejuvenation if you remain open to it.
Moving on to the dive, it was incredibly beautiful. Ironic given the sole purpose we were there, to collect trash. Performing what felt like surgery with a pair of dive shears to remove an entangled net from a sea cucumber really tugs at your psyche. It really is difficult to imagine the impact of our irreverence in the face of nature until you have tried to remove half of a plastic bottle from a section of coral that had grown around it to try and maintain life. Despite my efforts I was unable to remove it completely without breaking off the coral from the surrounding substrate. For the first time in a very long time I actually teared up. Man is truly an enemy of nature and decidedly the most destructive force on this beautiful planet. What kind of life do we claim to live if indeed we fail to acknowledge our contributions to its destruction.
On a brighter note, moving through the interwoven sections of the reef was incredible. The sheer amount of different species that call this area home is awe inspiring. The colors, the movement, the interactions, all come together in perfection that is best described by flawless symphony. I would expect nothing less from such a complex and inter-dependent ecological system.
I can say that my skill as a diver will reach new heights after leaving this little corner of the world. The buoyancy control one must have to perform the day to day task required in this program is nothing short of difficult. I would be lying if I said I already possessed such control but in time I expect that I will be closer to such a level. It most certainly will not hurt my cave aspirations. Kristen did well! She had some problems with proper weighting yesterday but today it seemed she had it a little more under control. Tomorrow she should be golden. She had the pleasure of having several Amore’ latch onto her today. A fish that is parasitic in nature and normally found near the mouths of sharks to remove excess food and feed on the bacteria that might be present. Of course with Kris, it quickly detached when
its efforts were in vain haha. Also, tomorrow I believe I am going to begin videoing the tasks. I think I am adequately acclimated to the flow of operations, making me ready to add video into the mix!
They say when you come here to assist in this conservation effort , you may never want to leave. I can honestly say that already, after three days, it has become quite clear why that would be the case. I admire these people and their persistence in what would appear to others as a lost cause. In the end though, if an effort like this is deemed unworthy of our attention then there is little we can do for ourselves.