November 26 2008 AustraliaDivers support breast cancer dayWhen one of the members of Pro Dive Nelson Bay’s Narki Gnome Dive Club was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, the group wanted to support her and raise awareness for the Breast Cancer Network of Australia (BCNA).   Diving was what brought them together, so they held an event with their own underwater twist. For the past eight years Mini-Fields of Women have been held in communities across Australia during October as part of Australia's breast cancer month, an initiative from The Breast Cancer Network of Australia (BCNA). The Mini-Fields of Women campaign places hundreds of hot pink lady silhouettes in prominent positions throughout Australia to represent women affected by breast cancer.  Full story...

August 25 2008 HawaiiArchaeologists have located British whaler sunk by bad weather in 1837 off Kure Atoll Artefacts from the remains of a wreck believed to be of the British whaling vessel Gledstanes lost for 171 years have been found off Kure Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. The artefacts include four large anchors, cannons and cannonballs. The Gledstanes is the fourth whaling vessel found in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, evidence of the area's significance as a 19th-century whaling area.  The divers who found the shipwreck were taking part in the 2008 Maritime Heritage Expedition, sponsored by NOAA's National Marine Sanctuaries.  Full story...

August 10 2008 UK Bogus bends nets Divers £250,000  A pair of divers swindled £250,000 (US$500,000) from the National Health Service for treating bogus cases of the bends.  David Welsh, 49, and diving instructor Michael Brass, 43, are facing prison sentences after being found guilty of conspiracy to defraud the NHS and perverting the course of justice. Welsh ran the Fort Bovisand diving centre, which had its own recompression chamber.  They paid strangers they met in pubs up to £200 to pose as divers who needed recompression treatment, they only needed only the real names, addresses, dates of birth and national insurance numbers of the supposed victims to work the fraud. Most had never been underwater and some could barely swim.  Welsh billed National Health Trusts from all over the UK £6,500 a time for treating the 37 fake victims.  The fraud was discovered when police investigated two cases of divers from Liverpool who were supposedly treated for the bends at the recompression chamber.    Full story...

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South Korea

ImageDivers 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.

Veterans of cleaning up, the divers have been involved in numerous underwater cleanups for environmental non profit organisation Project AWARE.  But for this environmental disaster some of the concerned divers traveled over 5 hours with their families to help more than 7000 volunteers fight the oil slick. 

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The tidal flats near the county of Taean, about 150 kilometers southwest of Seoul, are home to rich wildlife, oyster and fish farms, and a national park. Each year, millions of tourists flock there to bathe in the summer or watch winter migrating birds stopping to feed in the muddy flats teeming with clams.Freezing conditions and high seas made the fight to contain the 10,000-ton spill difficult.  The shoreline cleanup involved scrubbing boulders coated with oil and scooping up sand soaked with oil. 

PADI Regional Manager Boo Kyung Kim said “At this stage, the oil is stuck on the surface of rocks on the beach and shoreline and it is very hard to cleanup, there are also a lot of places that can’t yet be reached such as small rocky islands and remote areas on the western coastline. The divers will keep visiting these areas for voluntary work to help restore the coastal environment.

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”Officials estimate the environmental disaster will take at least 2 months to cleanup but it is impossible to predict how long it will take for the damaged marine ecosystems to recover.  Special thanks to the following dive centres who helped with the cleanup operation.  Go Diving, Best Dive Masan, Top Sports, Blue Divers, Aqua Marine, Divenuts, Paranbada and Mr. Won Gi Kang owner of Peace Underwater. 


Project AWARE Foundation is a nonprofit organisation working with divers to conserve underwater environments through education, advocacy and action.  Visit www.projectaware.org to support your local office and participate in environmental activities to make a lasting difference. 
 
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