Divers help fight South Korea’s worst ever oil spill

South Korea’s worst oil spill in history has kept divers busy above the water this new year.  Dedicated divers from 7 dive centres volunteered their time to help clean up the coastal area where a 20km slick threatens wildlife and valuable sea farms.

Another virgin shark birth 

A Hungarian aquarium is celebrating a virgin shark birth after its lone female whitetip reef shark produced a pup without having ever come into contact with a male shark.

Sharm El Sheikh voted World’s Leading Dive Destination 

At the 14th annual World Travel Awards ceremony held on the Turks and Caicos islands on the December 12. Some 167.000 tourism professionals in over 190 countries voted for the awards which have been described by the Wall Street Journal as “the travel industry’s equivalent of the Oscars”.

A second pup is on the way for a virgin white-spotted bamboo shark at Carl Hayden Community High School - USA.

Teacher Fredi Lajvardi, programme manager for the Carl Hayden Center for Marine Science, again explained parthenogenesis. This type of birth occurs when an unfertilized egg develops into a new pup.

White House Plans to Address Trash in the Ocean Boosts Project AWARE’s International Cleanup Efforts

Beaches across Asia Pacific saw record numbers of volunteers cleaning up underwater and on shore for International Cleanup Day 2007 and now The White House unveils its plans to address trash in the ocean.

The White House decision is welcomed by Project AWARE who already spearheads thousands of clean ups every year in a bid to conserve underwater environments worldwide. 

The former HMNZS Canterbury has been scuttled as the Bay of Islands' newest tourist attraction and now lies under about 30m of water in Deep Water Cove. The resulting artificial reef is expected to boost tourism by 15-20 per cent and become a divers' playground.

Pacific Rubbish Tip

Spain

Second Vessel Seized 
A second ship belonging to the Florida treasure hunting company Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc., which is embroiled in a court battle with Spain over a US$500-million sunken treasure has been seized by Spanish police.