Split from Coral Bleaching - What are Sea Walkers?

[Bowmouth]

It's impossible to not interact to some extent.

I agree.

From the moment we jump jump in the water with a bottle on our back we are interacting with the reef and its inhabitants.

I think it's important though that we should always remember that we are merely visitors and in no way part of the underwater world and its creatures. We should respect their world and try to disturb the reef and animals as little as possible.

Interaction is fine but only on their terms.
Touching, poking or handling animals by divers, sea walkers and snorkelers I think should always be discouraged.

A titan trigger fish defending its nest / territory and taking a bite out of your leg is completely fine though....

 

[Bowmouth]

Well this is not similar to my experience.

I don't know why, but when I dive with locals generally they seem to be more concerened with making money than protecting anything, in Thailand too...

Possibly because the money is more connected to their surviving and feeding a family than just funding a "working holiday?"

But I have seen foreigners working for short terms "illegally," refuse to dive with customers who have touched things or disrespected the environment on purpose. Not just once mind you, but a few times.

Believe me, there are lots of Thai divers who do respect the environment, do a lot of volunteer work on the reefs and in the Marine National Parks and who are concerned about their natural environment.

I think one of the big problems is that the (local) government(s) just do not do enough to protect the reefs and do not use all of the resources they have to protect the marine environment.

 

[Bowmouth]

My original posting was a bit misleading. Basically what I mean is that I prefer a DM who tease the animals over a shark fining boat. If it needs local tourists with helmets walking on corals, I still take it if in exchange there is no dynamite, cyanid fishing etc etc.
It is just the lesser evil.

OK.
But as divers we are not really able to prevent fishermen from long-lining, dynamite fishing, trawling in protected areas or cyanide fishing.
The only thing we can do in such cases is take pictures, write reports and contact local authorities and hope they'll catch the "bad" guys. (or grab your rocket-launcher out of your cupboard and blow them to pieces).

What we, as divers, sea-walkers, snorkelers and other "H2O tourists" can do is to make an effort in leaving as little a mark as possible in the underwater world and to its creatures.

 

[Bowmouth]

......Where will this end?

It will all end with empty oceans.

Well, not really empty; possibly lots of jellies and pelagic tunicates (salps).
And sea urchins, lots of them too!

Or maybe it's going to be entirely different and human-eating aliens invade our world and eat us all before we end emptying the ocean from its fishies.
Then when all the humans are gone and the aliens fly back to their planets with their bellies and freezers full the oceans will thrive with fish again and evolution may start all over once more.

Or something like that....

 

[black_sea]

Many DM and instructors I know cut fishing lines and net buoys in marine protected areas. And I have to say that one cannot put a simple definition on the people harming the environment.
For example last time at Racha Noi a luxury yacht with an Australian flag had it's anchor straight in the coral. An instructor put that one into some big rocks...
And a person from the "first" world will certainly produce a lot more waste energy and plastic waste than 20 "third world" inhabitants.
What can we ourselves do? We did a clean-up. I refuse to let my customers touch anything except dead coral in extremely strong current, as a hand-hold. I myself decided not to have children. I could go on with this list for a while- but my idea is we can make a difference educating people.
When I have some free time I might make a web-page about the damage Sea Walkers make to the environment. But one thing you all can do is edit relevant Wikipedia articles. For example, I added to the "Finding Nemo" page that the movie produced an environmental holocaust for the reef and it's inhabitants. We can edit a page on Sea Walkers - or whatever the business is most often sold as - and this might make a few people act responsibly. Sometimes small steps resonate profoundly.
Steering humans from consumer to steward- I know I myself have a long way to go.

 

[JTinSD]

SeaWalkers beware! Here comes HydroBOB.

Video - they seem to be suspended from something. A boat?

 

[Dirty-Dog]

SeaWalkers beware! Here comes HydroBOB.

Video - they seem to be suspended from something. A boat?

No, they're not. There is a float attached to the top, which I suppose is intended to make them more difficult to tip over. They're lifted in and out of the water with a small crane, but then you're turned loose. Sue and I rode them, once, and it's one of the reasons we took up SCUBA.

 

[lord khram]

Looks to me just like a more elaborate and expensive way of damaging the reef.
Crash into it whilst riding an on expensive piece of equipment rather than walking on it.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

Looks to me just like a more elaborate and expensive way of damaging the reef.
Crash into it whilst riding an on expensive piece of equipment rather than walking on it.

Not really. The company sends divers/guides down with the riders, and the one time we rode the BOBs, they were very careful to make sure that there was no contact with the reef.

 

[lord khram]

Not really. The company sends divers/guides down with the riders, and the one time we rode the BOBs, they were very careful to make sure that there was no contact with the reef.

Yes I dare say the vast majority operate in a responsible fashion, as is the case in most walks of life.
But I am afraid the sea walker operators etc at certain locations in Thailand that sparked this discussion are anything but responsible, or caring in any way towards their surroundings. So sadly I very much doubt some new equipment would prompt a change in their ways.