Blue Heron Bridge Trolls

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Two months in a row Scuba Diving magazine has mentioned BHB has a must do dive in their articles. It is not just a local dive spot anymore. I have friends, thanks to SB, from all over the the US and the world that are looking forward to diving here. It needs to be protected, lest we lose it.. look what happened to our reefs in Broward County. Do we want the same for our little piece of paradise at Phil Foster Park? (and just for the record, I am all for less regulation, but BHB is being abused)
 
Yes Jenny I've seen those articles also. Weekend before last when High Tide was around 1ish, by my guesstimate, there were 150 divers. That may not seem like a ton, but cram those into that area, and wow!

My solutions include: All divers must have a park pass/daily/monthly from a local dive shop nearby. Charge a fee to hold classes there. Instructors/shops can pass that cost along to the students. Set up "classroom areas". If instructors are taking their students outside of the "instruction areas" their passes are revoked.

Just thinking out loud.
 
The worst practice I see, is part of the "standards" practice of many agencies.....it has them doing an OW I class at the BHBm with 4 different dives to be conducted--and the first one, the one where potentially zero skills exist, has them doing essentially a RESORT Course run with 6 to 12 or more students( with one or 2 instructors/assistants). And we have seen larger than this! This first step needs to be removed as a choice for them. I have no problem with an instructor taking one, maybe 2 students on a resort course swim and tour over the BHB area, IF they are able to absolutely control the bouyancy of the 1 or 2 students during this tour. In 99% of the first dive OW classes we see running at the BHB, the majority of the students are up and down and all over the place, and the instructors are so overwhelmed by having this number of non-divers in the water with them, it is all they can do to prevent drownings or embolisms. Bouyancy swings are ignored, and the bottom gets trashed with rototilling. Typically they weight the non-diver students 5 or more pounds too heavy, to prevent them from floating up to the surface without wanting to...This causes the rototilling, with head up and fins down, into the sand and hydroids and nudibranchs, etc. This behavior must not be allowed to continue in the primary life concentration areas of the park.
Either they need to spend 15 minutes swimming around north of the west fishing bridge--in the sand, and just getting comfortable with breathing underwater and figuring out what they don't know....or, maybe they need to be no longer do this tour dive first.


Next, is the dive where they wil typically kneel on the bottom. This must change from them doing this whereever they want to ( as in on top of nudiworld), to either north of the west fishing bridge in 12 feet of water, or some place far east out by the docks on the east side in 12 to 18 feet of water. The best place of the two, for minimal impact to the park, will be north of the west fishing bridge, since all the silting that will result from the kneeling and thrashing will have the silt headed north toward MacArthur Park, and this will in no way degrade the BHB Park. The East area by the docks, while not as concentrated in marine life in the sandy areas by the docks, can still have the silt kicked up, be held in suspension and carried west to degrade vis and add turbidity to the environment at the West side. Still, this is much more desirable than what has been going on...at least to me.

I would love to get permission to add a large underwater deck that is 30 by 30, to the far east bottom, in 18 feet of water, and have classes use this....but that would be a major permitting issue--not imossible at all, but a lot of work for a few of us.


There is also a dive in the series where the students must do simulated ascents and OOA drills...with lots of bottom to surface and back to bottom runs....there is constant standing on the bottom with this, and constant silting, and next to zero awareness for what is about to be under the fins, when they hit bottom. This can't be allowed to continue a the West Side by the nav channel...not the way it is done by most now, with total disregard for the environment. The far east side is better for this, due to lower concentration of life, and the silting won't be quite as bad for the non-student population that is having it's dive quality ruined by the silting and poor vis this form of class will cause.

Things can only get far worse, as the BHB gets even more publicity, and many more divers. And it will continue to gain many more divers per day...there is no changing this. For now, instruction done incorrectly, is the biggest problem most of the regulars see.

The instructors are going to fire back about the photographers lieing on the bottom shooting pictures--however, they look carefully where they are positioning themselves, and they are putting very low pressure on the parts of the bottom then touch with--meaning little chance for damage, when compared to rototilling, or falling to the bottom from 18 feet, and impacting with fins. The instructors taking this anti-photographer position will be a tiny minority voice, with the large majority voice speaking against only the poor instruction practices mentioned so far.

Please add your thoughts to this, and hopefully some of you will think of much better solutions than I have.
 
The worst practice I see, is part of the "standards" practice of many agencies.....it has them doing an OW I class at the BHBm with 4 different dives to be conducted--and the first one, the one where potentially zero skills exist, has them doing essentially a RESORT Course run with 6 to 12 or more students( with one or 2 instructors/assistants). And we have seen larger than this!

Unfortunately, I don't think there will be any way to regulate this kind of activity, at least not any time soon. Rules and regs won't be able to stop these dive instructors, but social pressure might.

I think we as a group need to start calling out these dive shops and instructors, by name, on this forum and elsewhere, and let them know that people are not happy about their practices. Instructors, shops, and their students should know that if they continue to degrade this resource, they will lose customers in the long run.
 
The area north of the fishing pier may prove problematic even with stairs.
Sorry I don't have any better recommendations.
Back in the early 80's I had my "open water" dives off Biscayne causeway and may have flailed a little on their version of nudie world but that dive had been preceded by lots of pool sessions.
Since that was conducted thru U of M, Im guessing these instructors don't have access to a pool for basic training.
It is easier when you can actually see your instructor, if I remember right.....
John

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I personally would not be adverse to a user fee for diving at the bridge provided it went to bettering the site.
Recent events make me think the sheriff and FWC's time could be better spent patrolling for violations over hassling people for being too far from their buddy's flag....
 
More regulations, more fees, more government....sounds like a plan... I think the most logical thing is to construt some type of platform and then have a very well anchored ascent descent line with a float ball. Rather than build a guge one, several smaller ones would be greatly benefical to instructors, since they can better control the ascents and they could be swept clean of sediment b frquent use.

If you build it they will come. The biggest problem with this site is not photogs, instructors or collectors... it is the over promotion of the site by various entities on this board.... The site should be dredged out and artifical reef should be placed and platforms built for a few instructors..
 
More regulations, more fees, more government....sounds like a plan... I think the most logical thing is to construt some type of platform and then have a very well anchored ascent descent line with a float ball. Rather than build a guge one, several smaller ones would be greatly benefical to instructors, since they can better control the ascents and they could be swept clean of sediment b frquent use.

If you build it they will come. The biggest problem with this site is not photogs, instructors or collectors... it is the over promotion of the site by various entities on this board.... The site should be dredged out and artifical reef should be placed and platforms built for a few instructors..

We have already seen that many instructors have no concern whatever, for the interests of the regular divers at the BHB, and the same can be said of certain spearfisherman....given the damage potential presently demonstrated, I do belive the Parks Department will have to get involved. Hopefully more in creating rules to be followed, and an honor system with violations reported by the regular divers there. If real enforcment is needed, that would be the worst case scenario. The Park "can" create rules, as far as I know. I think the foroum would be a great place to get consensus on what RULES are needed, and DD can play Devils Advocate for each rule, which he will enjoy--and this will be useful as well.

I think the platform issue needs to be asked for....the biggest issues are liable to be property damage potential ( to docks or boats) if there is a storm, and the platform (or platforms) break free from surge or big currents.....if any one has some insights on this, please share.
 
Did anyone dive on Sunday night? The Force E night Dive?
How was the viz?
Thanks
 
I think some simple signs and other media for awareness about the importance of not damaging the BHB bottom would be a good start, atleast while bigger things slowly get into motion.
 
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