  
Divers Code of Conduct
Underwater Photographer's Code of Practice
Other tips and Guidelines
More and more people are taking to the water. Some for
recreation; some to earn their living. This code is designed to ensure that
divers do not come into conflict with other water users and sets out some
guidelines which should be observed alongside the regulations relating to
Marine Nature Reserves.
Before leaving home
Contact the nearest BSAC Branch or the dive operator
local to the dive site for their advice. Seek advice from them about the local
conditions and regulations. If appropriate, have the correct chart and tide
tables for the area to be dived.
On the beach, river bank or lakeside
1.
Obtain permission before diving in a harbour
or estuary or in private water. Thank those responsible before you leave. Pay
harbour dues.
2.
Try to avoid overcrowding one site, consider
other people on the beach.
3.
Park sensibly. Avoid obstructing narrow
approach roads. Keep off verges. Pay parking fees and use proper car parks.
4.
Don't spread yourselves and your equipment
since you may upset other people. Keep launching ramps and slipways clear.
5.
Please keep the peace. Don't operate a
compressor within earshot of other people - or late at night.
6.
Pick up litter. Close gates. Be careful about
fires. Avoid any damage to land or crops.
7.
Obey special instructions such as National
Trust rules, local bye-laws and regulations about camping and caravanning.
8.
Remember divers in wet or drysuits are
conspicuous and bad behaviour could ban us from beaches.
In and on the water
1.
Mark your dive boats so that your Club can be
identified easily. Unmarked boats may become suspect.
2.
Ask the harbour-master or local officials
where to launch your boat - and do as they say. Tell the Coastguard, or a
responsible person, where you are going and tell them when you are back.
3.
Stay away from buoys, pots, and pot markers.
Ask local fishermen where not to dive. Avoid driving through rafts of seabirds
or seal colonies etc.
4.
Remember ships have not got brakes, so avoid
diving in fairways or areas of heavy surface traffic and observe the
'International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea'.
5.
Always fly the diving flag when diving, but
not when on the way to, or from, the dive site. Never leave a boat unattended.
6.
Do not come in to bathing beaches under
power. Use any special approach lanes. Do not disturb any seal or bird colonies
with your boats. Watch your wash in crowded anchorages.
7.
Whenever possible, divers should use a
surface marker buoy.
On conservation
1.
Never use a speargun.
2.
Shellfish, such as crabs and lobsters, take
several years to grow to maturity; over-collecting in an area soon depletes
stocks. Observe local Byelaws and restrictions on the collection of animal and
plant specimens. However the BSAC recommends that you do not collect shellfish,
but if you must collect, only take mature fish or shellfish and then only what
you need for yourself. Never take a berried female (a female with eggs), this is
stock for future years. Never sell your catch or clean it in public or on the
beach and do not display your trophies.
3.
Ascertain and comply with seasonal access
restrictions established to protect seabirds and seals from disturbance. During
the seabird breeding season (1st March 1st August) reduce noise and speed near
seabird breeding sites. Do not approach seal breading or haul-out sites. Do not
approach dolphins or porpoises in the water.
4.
Be conservation conscious. Avoid damage to
weeds and the sea bed. Do not bring up sea-fans, corals, starfish or sea urchins
- in one moment you can destroy years of growth.
5.
Take photographs and notes - not specimens.
On wrecks
- Do not dive on a designated wreck site without a licence. Protected
wrecks are indicated on Admiralty charts and marked by buoys, or warning
notices on the shore nearby
- Military wrecks should not be disturbed or items removed from them.
This includes the debris field. The debris field is the trail of wreckage
that comes away from the main body of the wreck during the sinking
process. This trail can consist of parts of the ship, the cargo and the
personal possessions of the crew.
- Do not lift anything that may be of archaeological importance.
- If you do discover what might be an historic wreck do not talk about
it, but contact the Receiver of Wreck (023 8032 9474), who will advise you about your next
steps. If your find is important you may apply for it to be designated a
protected wreck site. You can then build up a well-qualified team with the
right qualifications to investigate your site with the assistance
- If you do lift any material from the sea-bed, it is a legal
requirement to report it to the Receiver of Wreck as soon as reasonably
possible, even if you own the wreck that the material has come from.
- Avoid the temptation to take souvenirs. Go wreck diving to enjoy the
scenery and life, or get involved in projects. If you must take something,
try photographs or measurements, and records of marine life.
- Know and understand wreck law. If you remove material from wreck,
which you then sell for profit, you are diving for reward, which is
outside the scope of sport diving and you must conduct your dives in
strict accordance with HSE regulations. A sound knowledge of wreck law
will prevent you breaking the law, perhaps even ending up with a criminal
record where no crime was intended.
Members are reminded that in light of this policy following any
conviction of any BSAC member for an offence in relation to wreck the member
will be liable to have his or her membership withdrawn fro bringing the BSAC
into disrepute.
Don't
let divers down keep to the diver's code
See Receiver of Wreck
for details of the law and procedures to report finds.
Most underwater photographers are concerned to protect the environment in which
they take their pictures and to avoid stressing marine creatures when
they are taking their images. This is good for the marine environment
and leads to better photographs.
This Code sets out good practices for anyone who aspires to take pictures
or video underwater. Many aspects are also applicable to the general sports
diver.
-
No-one should attempt to take pictures underwater
until they are a competent diver. Novices thrashing about with their hands
and fins while conscious only of the image in their viewfinder can do
untold damage.
-
Every diver, including photographers, should
ensure that gauges, octopus regulators, torches and other equipment are
secured so they do not trail over reefs or cause other damage.
-
Underwater photographers should possess superior
precision buoyancy control skills to avoid damaging the fragile marine
environment and its creatures. Even experienced divers and those
modeling
for photographers should ensure that careless or excessively vigorous
fin strokes and arm movements do not damage coral or smother it in clouds
of sand. A finger placed carefully on a bare patch of rock can do much
to replace other, more damaging movement.
-
Photographers should carefully explore the area
in which they are diving and find subjects that are accessible without
damage to them or other organisms.
-
Care should be taken to avoid stressing a subject.
Some fish are clearly unhappy when a camera invades their "personal
space" or when pictures are taken using flash or lights. Others are
unconcerned. They make the best subjects.
-
Divers and photographers should never kill marine
life to attract other types to them or to create a photographic opportunity,
such as feeding sea urchins to wrasse. Creatures should never be handled
or irritated to create a reaction and sedentary ones should never be placed
on an alien background, which may result in them being killed.
-
Queuing to photograph a rare subject, such as
a seahorse, should be avoided because of the harm repeated bursts of bright
light may do to their eyesight. For the same reason, the number of shots
of an individual subject should be kept to the minimum.
-
Clown fish and other territorial animals are
popular subjects but some become highly stressed when a photographer moves
in to take a picture. If a subject exhibits abnormal behaviour move on
to find another.
-
Night diving requires exceptional care because
it is much more difficult to be aware of your surroundings. Strong torch
beams or lights can dazzle fish and cause them to harm themselves by blundering
into surrounding coral or rocks. Others are confused and disturbed if
torch beams or lights are pointed directly at them. Be prepared to keep
bright lights off subjects that exhibit stressed behaviour, using only
the edge of the beam to minimise disturbance.
-
Care should be taken when photographing in caves,
caverns or even inside wrecks because exhaust bubbles can become trapped
under overhangs killing marine life. Even small pockets of trapped air
which allow divers to talk to each other inside them can be lethal for
marine life.
-
The image in the viewfinder can be very compelling.
Photographers should remain conscious of their position and of the marine
life around them at all times. In sensitive areas, they should avoid moving
around on the bottom with their mask pressed up against the camera viewfinder.
-
Areas of extensive damage or pollution should
be reported to the appropriate authorities.
Today, when so many more divers are taking up underwater photography,
both still and video, it is essential that the preservation of the fragile
marine environment and its creatures is paramount and that this Code
of Good Practice is carefully observed.
This Code of Good Practice has been introduced by the Marine
Conservation Society with funding from PADI's AWARE project. It is endorsed
by the British Society of Underwater Photographers, the Northern Underwater
Photographic Group and the Bristol Underwater Photography Group as well
as being supported by the Sub-Aqua Association, the British Sub-Aqua Club
and the Scottish Sub-Aqua Club.
What you can do to save Coral Reefs
A. When you visit a coral reef, help keep it healthy by
respecting all local guidelines, recommendations, regulations, and customs.
Ask local authorities or your dive shop how to protect the reef.
B. Be an informed consumer. Consider carefully the coral objects that you
buy for your coffee table. Ask the store owner or manager from what country
the coral is taken and whether or not that country has a management plan to
insure that the harvest was legal and sustainable over time.
C. Only buy marine aquarium fish if you know they have been collected in an
ecologically sound manner. In some areas, marine fish harvested for the pet
trade, are stunned with sodium cyanide so that capturing them is easier.
D. Surf the net! Many different addresses exist to link you to information
about coral reefs and what you can do to become involved. A good starting
point is at
http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/coral-reef.html
E. Don’t anchor on the reef. If you go boating near a coral reef, use
mooring buoy systems when they are available.
F. If you dive, don’t touch! Take only pictures and leave only bubbles!
G. Keep your fins’ gear, and hands away from the coral, as
this contact can hurt you and will damage the delicate coral animals.
H. Stay off the bottom because stirred-up sediment can
settle on coral and smother it.
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