Divers find the 7-mile reef in Jeddah &#39unbelievably clean&#39

JEDDAH, 30 Sept. — Is the environmental awareness campaign in the Kingdom taking root at last?

To some divers in Jeddah, the answer may be "yes," at least among picnickers or promenaders along the city’s corniche.

A week ago, members of the Filipino Scuba Divers Association (FSDA), conducted an off-shore clean-up dive off the 7-Mile Reef and for the first time in six years they came out of the water empty-handed.

"Walang basura! (no garbage!)," exclaimed Khalid Haddad, a Saudi married to a Filipino woman, as he and 14 other divers came out of the waters with barely a sack of garbage.

It was not just the absence of garbage. The divers also found an abundance of edible fish – groupers, red snappers, parrot fish – and other aquatic life, indicating a healthy ecosystem.

The planned clean-up dive was FSDA’s participation in this year’s worldwide clean-up day slated on Sept. 21, called Project AWARE (Aquatic World Awareness Responsibility and Education). The activity is a brainchild of the Professional Association of Diving Instructor’s (PADI).

On a clean-up day, scuba divers the world over would either clean a coast or beach or go offshore to clean a reef. Now on its 10th year, the project has earned worldwide following and acceptance, and is currently endorsed by the Ocean Conservancy, a US non-governmental agency that advocates for wild, healthy oceans.

Last year, the FSDA, with more than 150 volunteers, collected some 7 tons of garbage along Jeddah’s south corniche. The leaders of the organization decided to conduct an offshore dive this year for a change.

Garbage thrown on the coast or on the sea is usually carried off to some portions of the Red Sea during tidal changes. A dive conducted two years ago off the 5-mile Reef yielded some tons of garbage mostly the non-biodegradable variety such as plastic products, tires and even car batteries.

"It is nice to go out with the intent to clean-up and find out that the site (usually a dump) is already clean. The years of environmental awareness efforts are finally paying off. People are now more conscious about their environment," noted Elmer Fuentes, president of FSDA.

In the past 6 years that the organization performed clean-up dives, it has conducted environmental consciousness seminars as well. The FSDA believes that education is the key to helping keep the environment clean, and like charity, it must begin at home. With a public aware of the dangers of polluting the seas, there will be more responsible citizens to help keep their environs clean.

FSDA leaders said they are not out to clean the world, for their group is too small for such a gigantic task. But they do hope to create ripples across the planet.

So on board the Sultan Al-Bahar with skipper Jolito Santes at the helm, off to the 7-Mile Reef the divers sailed. After a briefing on diving and clean-up procedures, the divers plunged into the deep blue sea.

"The participants this year were not as many as in the previous years, yet they were able to show that camaraderie and commitment for a good cause still exist among members of FSDA," said Mike Mariano, a scuba diving instructor, and one of the advisers of the organization.

Clean-up dives or any other activity for the environment have attracted participation from other nationalities. Among the 15 scuba divers, aside from Khalid Haddad, were a German and a Briton. After the first dive, Lothar Hans, commented: "I never saw so many variety of beautiful fish!"

Brian Daniels, the 60-year-old Briton who is married to a Filipino woman and calls the Philippines home, and who went on a boat dive for the first time, said it was "a lovely experience."

As in past boat dives, the safety of divers was of paramount concern of the organization. Two divemasters were assigned to make sure that each diver, not only have sufficient air supply, they also have trash bags and other equipment they need. The divemasters also recorded the timing (in and out) of each diver, and roll calls at end of each dive to make sure that every one is accounted for.

"The divers came prepared, they were all safety-conscious," commented Ivan Ramo, one of the divemasters.

Because there was nothing to clean in first dive site, the divers moved to a second location (5-Mile Reef) for an exploratory and research dive. Again, none of the usual garbage like plastic bags or tetrapak wrappers could be found.

But divers did find remnants of fishing nets wrapped around corals, and abandoned anchor lines. These items contribute to destruction of corals, thereby destroying breeding grounds of fish and other marine life.

Abandoned anchor lines indicate that boats drop their anchors randomly in any part of the sea. Anchors that hit corrals, needless to say, destroy this fragile aquatic fixture that take years to grow.

Because of these findings, the FSDA leaders are planning to meet with boat dive operators and propose a project to place mooring buoys in dive sites frequented by divers. Use of mooring buoys will minimize the destruction of delicate corals.