"We Are Water"

This year at the Boston Sea Rovers show, I had the opportunity to listen to Jill Heinerth present about her adventures deep within the planet's veins. As an extremely talented and passionate cave diver, Jill has spent hundreds of hours underground and has witnessed the depressing ambivalence and lack of connection that people have to water.

Her film, "We Are Water," aims to establish a bond of appreciation between humans and the water we depend upon for life. Brushing your teeth...a shower after the gym...a cold glass on a hot day...a nice swim at a public pond...flushing your waste down the toilet...OUR OWN BODIES...

In high school science class we all learned about the Earth: the water planet that supports unique conditions that allow various lifeforms to thrive. I recall one specific lesson in ninth grade biology where we took our seats as my teacher presented us each with an apple and plastic knife. She told us to strategically cut away at the apple as she explained to us the percentages of water on the planet - no one was allowed to eat the percentages cut from the apple. We were to throw the delicious fruit in a bag at the front of the room as we slowly but surely ended with less than one percent of the apple remaining at our desks.

With a sliver of apple peel left on our plates, she said, "This is how much of the world's water is available for us to use and survive. This is the water that we drink, the water that we use in our homes, the water that is currently underground and in our lakes and streams. You can eat it in one bite or you can throw it in the garbage, but you will never get that water back once it's been polluted." 

Despite the rough accuracy of her analogy and the fact that it was the period before lunch as we drooled over the discarded apple bits, the experiment seemed to have a profound impact on the class as a whole. At swim practice that night it was all I could think about.

Eight years later, it's still something I ponder daily. What will America do when there is not enough clean water? It's already a global issue. When will people realize that their water comes from more than their tap? When will people care about their personal connection to the life-giving resource?

"We Are Water" Trailer:

You should watch the whole documentary. It really demonstrates the need for better environmental education and activism!

When I congratulated Jill on her work with the film she mentioned, "In my area, the local farmers call sinkholes 'go away holes.' Anything they put in there simply goes away." Having cleaned up many sinkholes and seen trash miles into the rocky earth, Jill knows first hand that trash and pollution to NOT "go away."  

The fact that this is still a common belief and practice is absurd. I can't stifle the mental image of taking humanity by the chin to rattle its lopsided thoughts out of its ears...[to make way for an appreciative and rational perspective of course!] :)

Polluted water eventually ends up in two places... 1. The ocean, where it disturbs delicate chemical balances in underwater habitats that support one of our major food sources.... or 2. the underground aquifers that supply whole nations with fresh drinking water. (I'm not sure which is worse...)

Even in the small amount of caving I have done on the East coast, I have seen enormous piles of trash at cave entrances and at the bottom of underground waterfalls. In the most remote places on earth, you can still see human disturbances. On one occasion, the water in a cave we were exploring smelled like human and agricultural waste.

As a budding environmental field scientist, I frequently test for fecal coliform bacteria and note large nutrient pollution areas along the shores of lakes where septic systems have failed. I see the nightmarish results of poorly-designed developments and water runoff causing erosion. I see wells running dry in areas where there is not enough groundwater replenishment to support new housing complexes. Nevertheless, the most harrowing of all is the number of people I come across who simply do not care about nature...

Because I like to end on a positive note, please think about where you get your water from. Think about the water that goes into your food you buy from the grocery store (food does not come from stores)...Think about where it goes when it pours down the drain and ask yourself what you can do to lessen your personal impact on the global water crisis!

With that I will leave you with another stunning documentary to watch in addition to "We Are Water."

...."Blue Gold" will also seriously get you thinking about the regulation of global water resources and the economy....

Cheers (to water) everyone!

Trailer:

Full Video:

Taste of the Sea

Sometimes I sit and wonder about possible solutions to the world's overfishing problems. Even now, I picture huge trawl nets dragging along the seafloor mercilessly leveling the precious benthic habitat. Endless long-lines extend far back into my memory as I recall pictures of pelagic death in our nets and on our hooks. I think of the billions of people in the world that need food and who rely on the ocean to provide their sustenance. I think of the historic booms and crashes of seafood industries around the world, and I question whether aquaculture alone will be able to save the starving seas.

When I feel the spiraling depressive fate of the ocean accelerating into my mind's depths, I have to consciously redirect my thoughts back up to the sunlight. In order to do so, I relinquish negativity and open up to any creative ideas, however ridiculous they may sound, that may help alleviate the worldwide fishing pressures on the sea.

The long-term solution is to work towards a changed human perspective, fostering respect for the ocean. However, education and appreciation for nature often realistically fall second to economic crisis and stability. To quote Sylvia Earle, "No oceans, no us. No blue, no green." Yes. I wholeheartedly agree, but that does not change the fact that money makes the world go 'round and that it is inevitably money that will facilitate the most effective changes in the least amount of time.

With that though I want to share an article about an oyster fishery in France that is dealing with an invasive snail and fouling dilemma. The New York Times recently posted, "In France, a Quest to Convert a Sea Snail Plague into a Culinary Treasure." http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/12/world/europe/in-france-a-quest-to-convert-a-sea-snail-plague-into-a-culinary-pleasure.html?placeId=readerchoice=smid=fb-nytimes&WT.z_sma=WO_COP_20140312&bicmp=AD&bicmlukp=WT.mc_id&bicmst=1388552400000&bicmet=1420088400000&_r=0.

The article talks about the invasive Atlantic slipper snail that was brought over to France via American ships from the eastern coast of North America. Crepidula fornicata, the common slipper snail, is know as one of the most populous fouling organisms of the coast. Though native to the eastern US, it is extremely resilient with incredible reproduction and settlement capabilities. Through my personal oyster research in Long Island Sound, I have witnessed the extensive efforts to control the species in Connecticut waters where they are native; the amount of money necessary for the same level of control in an areas where they are invasive is astronomical.

Crepidula snails; photo by Catalina Martin-Chico for the NYTimes

Pile of clams, oysters, and slipper snails; Catalina Martin-Chico NYTimes

If you read the article, you will recognize the mind-numbing process of separating the marketable clams and oysters from the nuisance slipper snails. You will also understand that the populations of snails are continuing to increase even with fishermen's desperate efforts to remove them from the oyster grounds. Disposing of the Crepidula imposes large costs to the industry so Pierrick Clament, a French businessman, asked an obvious question, "Would people eat it?"

Every time I hear of a new invasive or uncontrolled species that, because of human interactions with the sea, have become a nuisance and economic drain, I ask that very question: "Is the species edible, and would people eat it?" ...The slipper snail, uncontrollable algaes, jellyfish, sea urchins of the barren Caribbean, Humboldt squid... for the most part, these species are all edible and do have essential nutritional value. Then why shouldn't we harvest these species to lessen pressure on depleting fish stocks? Especially if there is money to be made in a new industry?

I applaud the entrepreneur and hope that his vision helps restore French coastal waters by removing the invasive slipper snails. I hope he makes money, I hope the coastal habitat benefits, and I hope that the new business decreases demand for other native species while improving the local economy. Win, win, win, win. Let's all expand our taste buds a bit and eat sustainable foods. Let this new slipper snail industry and the Floridian invasive lionfish recipes lead the way! I'm up for trying anything. Jellyfish sandwhich and popcorn snails anyone?

Women in Diving: splashing through the waves of adversity with grace.

March is designated as "Women's History Month," and in honor of all of the outstanding women who have broken down stereotypes and pushed the boundaries of scuba diving and science...I commend you. To a young female marine enthusiast like myself, there is nothing more encouraging than reading about the accomplishments of the many women in diving.

Before the 1940s, there was no such thing as SCUBA (self contained underwater breathing apparatus) and the available technologies in diving were severely limited to the military and commercial diving industry. I'm going to skip the extensive background of diving bells, the Mark V helmet, and decompression theory in order to jump to the part where women began shaking up the underwater world for the better.

It was the invention of open circuit scuba system, the Aqua Lung, by Jacques Cousteau (a French Naval Lieutenant) that really opened the doors into scientific and recreational diving in 1943. However, through the 1950s, the sport was male dominated. Women divers were few and far between. Lotte Hass, often referred to as the 'First Lady in Diving,' began her career in 1949 as an underwater film-maker and photographer. Zale Parry is attributed as another one of the first few female scuba divers. Parry crushed conventional limitations by setting a women's deep diving record to 209ft in 1954, and also helped run the first hyperbaric chamber for civilian divers in California. Sylvia Earle, an esteemed marine scientist, began diving in the 1950s and led the first team of women Aquanauts on the Tektite saturation diving experiment for NOAA in 1970. Know to many as, "Her Deepness," the nickname comes from her lifelong contributions to manned submersibles and deep water exploration.

Other women in diving from the 1950s include Maria Hults, a underwater photojournalist and one of the first NAUI female dive instructors, Frances Gaar, the first PADI female master instructor, Dolores Fisher, who opened the first USA recreational dive shop with her husband, and Eugene Clark, an ichthyologist and professor.

In an interview quoted by Hillary Viders' 2002 article about women divers, Sylvia Earle recalls that female Aquanauts were referred to as "Aqua Naughties." I'm glad these women were able to disregard the demeaning remarks and use their beautiful intellect to move forward in their careers. The early women divers were pioneers who followed their dreams whilst conquering adversity and sexism. Thank you for prying at the door to allow entry by more dedicated female explorers and scientists!

Left to right: young Lotte Hass, Zale Parry, Sylvia Earle

In the 1960s-1970s, many issues arose to complicate women's professional involvement in the dive industry. Male antagonists prompted ridiculous studies suggesting that women were unfit to dive while taking hormonal contraceptives and that they were inherently more susceptible to decompression sickness. Modern studies have negated such claims and ruled that "the bends" has no basis in gender. Personal insults and sexism shooed many avid female divers away from the sport during this time. Physical strength censure and blows to the female ability were on the lips of some male public safety divers and instructors. Nevertheless, times are changing and I would like of offer my sincere thanks to Valerie Taylor, Susan Bangasser, Lucy Bunkley-Williams, Hillary Viders, JoAnn Zighan and many many more female divers of the time.

It was the 1970s-1980s that saw an initial jump in women divers, explorers, and instructors. Women in the military and female Navy divers were now "allowed." Yes, allowed. Society deemed it alright to have talented and beautiful underwater television stars or dive explorers in the 50s, but the military and commercial dive industries were finally including women to work alongside men in dangerous deep missions. This page is dedicated to recognizing many outstanding women divers in the military: http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/keyport/WomenDivers/Wdivers2.htm.

I would also like to mention Tamara Brown, Donna Tobias, and Barbara Scholley for their amazing work as divers. 

Left to right: Tamara Brown, Donna Tobias, Barbara Scholley

When one thinks or reads about scuba diving in the 70s and 80s, sport technical diving is the excitingly controversial subject. These were the years where mixed gas diving was in it's infancy and when elite divers were pushing the depth limits to dive shipwrecks and extensive underwater cave systems. It was uncertain, it was dangerous, and there were many unfortunate accidents. That said, there were a few women that stood out during this time.

Evelyn Dudas made history as the first woman to dive the Northeastern wreck the Andrea Doria that lies at 230ft deep. She was one of the first women to use mixed gases for diving. Another great female, and veteran of the Doria, was Janet Bieser. Bieser is an experienced trimix diver and has logged thousands of dives on wrecks and in caves. She is well respected by even the heartiest male technical divers. If I am talking about the Doria, I can't go without mentioning Sally Wahrmann, another incredible female technical diver. This wreck has claimed many lives, but the training and diving proficiency of these female explorers allowed for countless experiences far beneath the ocean's surface.

Left: Evelyn Dudas today. Right: Janet Bieser about the Wahoo in the 80s.

Cristina Zenato and Sally Wahrmann today.

Getting into the 90s...when scuba diving really began expanding as a recreational sport, more and more women have gotten involved. Equipment manufacturers had begun to cater to the feme physique by coming out with women's wetsuits and buoyancy compensators. The recreational industry had really sprouted its legs and female underwater photographers, scientists, archaeologists, dive instructors, public safety divers, explorers and marine activists had taken the world by storm. Like everything else, discrimination still exists, but passionate female divers tend to pay no heed to inferior male or social disapproval.

Among the famed female explorers of today, Jill Heinerth has risen to the forefront of rebreather instruction and cave diving expeditions around the globe. Michelle Hall has dedicated her diving life to spreading awareness for marine conservation and educating young divers about the environment through film. Cristina Zenato, yet another cave diver, has become known as the world's shark whisperer of the Bahamas and has encouraged an alternate view about the great predators of the sea. Annie Crawley, a prestigious instructor and teacher, continues to inspire youth to connect with the Earth and to reach their fullest potential.

Annie Crawley and Jill Heinerth

The new millennium brought many more women to diving. Two of the recent marine conservationists and women in diving are Becky Kagan Schott and Julie Anderson. Schott is an avid cave explorer and has filmed feature productions for National Geographic. Her photos have appeared in countless diving magazines and her skills as a technical rebreather instructor have helped many more women delve into the technical diving field. Julie is the founder of a non-profit Shark Angels and has stirred up massive change in the way the world views sharks. She has spent hundreds of hours underwater with numerous large pelagic species and has dedicated her life to marine activism and to stopping overfishing of vulnerable populations.

Becky Kagan Schott and Julie Anderson

Today is International Women's Day. Although I think it is respectful and socially advantageous to have a day dedicated to honor women worldwide, the 'holiday' does not really mean anything special to me. I celebrate women everyday, as everyone should! Sexism and discrimination are still prevalent in America and the world as a whole. There is no way to completely escape the virulent demeanor of some individuals, especially in a male-dominated field. Even great male supporters of women in the diving industry will often make unknowing condescending remarks. When the phrase, "She can keep up with the boys," is completely eradicated as a compliment to strong, talented, dedicated, passionate female divers, only then will humanity understand the social adversity with which each of the mentioned women have be confronted. Though women make up a growing third of the newly recreational-certified divers, they are still a minority, and still face hardships in diving as a career. Again, to the many women leaders in diving before me, thank you with all my heart for your incredible efforts and passion. You all inspire me to continue my voyage in diving and marine conservation!

To learn more about the history of women in diving, please visit the Women Divers Hall of Fame website: http://www.wdhof.org/index2.shtml.

If you want to point fingers, point them in the direction of positive change...the blame game doesn't achieve much.

I can always trust Facebook for 3 things... 

1. All the ocean conservation organizations and interest pages I 'follow' will continually post thought-provoking stories and news regarding environmental science and preservation.

2. Although good-natured, some of these posts will be absurdly inaccurate or extremely opinionated without much scientific backing. Some organizations are more credible and post controversial, yet reasonable stories.

3. The comment part below many of such posts will inevitably be filled with words spoken by passionate idiots. If they agree with the conservation post, commentators usually poke fingers at everyone but themselves.... or if they for some reason happen upon the story and do not agree with the underlying conservation message/ news event, they feel it necessary to provide ignorant snip-its of scathing disagreement.  

----- For example, the mixed comments regarding the Western Australian Great White Shark Cull updates.... "Kill them all!" "Better them than us," "Sharks are not man-eaters, the Australian government is wack." Or the ridiculous posts about radiation killing EVERYTHING in the Pacific Ocean and giant mutated squid washing up on Californian shores...."Whoah, I didn't know nuclear power was that bad," "Stupid Japanese, now we can't even swim in Cali." ExCuse ME?! People... please read a book, how did racism even end up in this comment section? ----- 

Anyways... I'm sure you know exactly what I am talking about. The main point of this blog entry is to bring to your attention the incredible gaps in conservation knowledge and the lack of credible communication between science and the media. I want to banish negative energy and promote teamwork towards positive change.

The Cove, as I'm sure many of you are familiar with, is a documentary that received high awards for exposing the truth about massive dolphin/porpoise slaughters and captures for the marine park/aquarium show trade. While it is a radial film with some inappropriate cultural criticism, the underlying goal was to bring the aforementioned controversial topics to the center of marine conservation. A film is often the most effective way to promote appreciation for nature and to rupture human apathy regarding prominent environmental dilemmas. The Cove is no different. It very effectively spurred an uprising and planted a seed for change. 

Like anything that 'makes a statement,' there will inevitably be critics to follow (today it is me). Though I generally agree with the message of the documentary and "Like" it on Facebook, today, one post left a bad taste in my mouth: "Given her father’s incredible passion for animals and his conservation efforts, this is so WRONG." ...followed by a link to this article (https://www.thedodo.com/steve-irwins-daughter-becomes--454345897.html) titled "Steve Irwin's Daughter Becomes SeaWorld Ambassador."

The article explains how Bindi Irwin is becoming involved with SeaWorld's "Generation Nature" program (http://seaworldkids.com/en/gennature/). Irwin is quoted as saying that the new initiative is "all about encouraging kids to get involved and be game-changers for wildlife and wild places." So..... I fail to see the issue here. 

Simply because SeaWorld has recently been under fire about their captive marine mammal program and show (which I disagree with, but also appreciate many aspects of aquariums), The Cove decides it is necessary to poke fingers at a young girl who is trying to instill a love and appreciation for nature in children?! The comments that followed this post were similarly disgusted and highly offensive to a young women who has dedicated her life to spreading awareness for preservation of the natural world. With over three-quarter of a million followers, I ask 'The Cove' whether this is truly the attitude with which they wish to proceed in marine conservation. 

• 

  2:11pm
  

  Hillary Lynn
  

  
  

  
  

  Perhaps instead of criticizing Bindi Irwin's efforts to connect with children and inspire them to care about nature via Seaworld, you should encourage your fans to ponder the pros and cons of aquariums. I am fully against keeping orcas and large pelagic species in captivity, however, for many humans, an aquarium is the only accessible interaction with the sea and serves as the spark for a lifetime of appreciation for the natural environment. If you want to keep your message for sustainability and marine conservation, it would be wise not to lash out against others with similar goals and passions. Seaworld definitely needs some positive change, it is outrageous to keep highly intelligent species trained and trapped for human enjoyment, but maybe Bindi could utilize her "celebrity status" to further this notion and change the reasons why children are drawn to Seaworld. Don't discourage, only educate and encourage.

  
  

  Negativity leads to spiteful defensiveness... I think you would have more impact on reducing dolphin and whale fishing pressures with a positive attitude that attempts to understand long-standing cultural traditions. Only then will people listen, and only then will you be able to promote education and reform to "save species on the brink."

  
  

  Thank you kindly,

  
  

  Hillary

You may or may not agree with me, you may or may not agree with The Cove's Facebook post. Yet nevertheless, it is imperative that I discuss the "blame game," and how pointing fingers at people never accomplishes anything. 

If you want to make a difference in the world of marine conservation, you will never get there by scolding legislators or those who take no care to eat sustainable seafood. Nothing will ever be achieved by scoffing at climate change skeptics or by lashing out at ignorant trolling Facebook commentators.

Progression in marine and environmental preservation will only be brought on by education and human appreciation for nature. Instead of pointing fingers and blaming others for the critical state of many endangered species and polluted habitats, point in the direction of positive change. Provide ideas as to how people can work together to make the world a better place. Negativity stifles creativity! :)

Mangroves: adventures in the shallows

Well, this isn't exactly about cave diving...but I recently finished editing a short video of a friend and me kayaking through the mangroves in the shallow coastal waters off Key Largo and wanted to share it will you all.

Hope you like it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWUO1IpP7A4. Be sure to watch the whole thing, surprise upside-down jellies will wow you :)

Mangroves are incredibly important to the coastal areas. The halophytic tree species serve as barriers protecting coastlines from wave and storm erosion. Mangroves also serve as a nursery for many juvenile coral reef fish and larger pelagic species. Without the protection of calm waters and ample hiding places to avoid predation, these fish species would not be able to mature and migrate to the coral habitats offshore.

If you want to learn more about the peril of mangrove forests worldwide, please look into their degradation due to coastal development. Let's protect this uniquely amazing shallow water habitat!