[Coral-List] The Diving Industry and Ocean Conservation
Eesat Atikkan
atikkanuwn at yahoo.com
Wed Nov 27 12:32:36 EST 2013
The only objective DEMA has is to promote the sale of scuba and related equipment.
It may pay lip service to conservation, to environmental stewards, etc., but that is simply the gilt
Protection of the environment is going to come from the divers - such as avoid operations that you feel are not good protectors of the environment.
Next is the education/training - not talking basic scuba training. I am talking about the responsibility of scuba instructors to share the concepts of ecological sensitivity with their students - oops I forgot weekend wonders don't have time for that.
Joking aside - this has to be approached as broadly as possible and not simply with slogan, but with a real embracing of the matter. Divers are the ones supporting the industry - they can influence the choices that the industry makes. What is needed is that they be made aware of their power
Carpe aqua
Esat Atikkan
--------------------------------------------
On Mon, 11/25/13, Steve Mussman <sealab at earthlink.net> wrote:
Subject: Re: [Coral-List] The Diving Industry and Ocean Conservation
To: "Melbourne Briscoe" <Mel at briscoe.com>, coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
Date: Monday, November 25, 2013, 12:01 PM
"DEMA is not supportive of the NOP,
because they distrust the players and
motives, and there are some parts of the
NOP they don't like at all."
Mel,
DEMA has a simple mandate to follow.
The organization is charged with
promoting sustainable growth
of the industry, but it is allowing a
dilemma to develop because it appears to
view this objective to either be in
conflict with or subordinate to their
simultaneous obligation to protect the
underwater environment. In my view
there needs to be more balance and
further that to oppose a policy like the
NOP only reinforces the perception
that they fail to recognize that their two
primary objectives are in fact
inseparable and innately linked. Although
DEMA points out that they are not
members of the National Ocean Policy
Coalition, they have clearly partnered
with this organization and in doing so
have sided with a number of special
interests that are not encumbered by
commitments to conserve and protect
natural aquatic resources. So while I can
sympathize with the concerns
of
extraction industries and others as
they contemplate the
policy's implementation, I can find no
legitimate reason for DEMA to view
the policy with comparable distrust and
skepticism.
Regards,
Steve
-----Original Message-----
>From: Melbourne Briscoe
>Sent: Nov 22, 2013 4:33 PM
>To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>Subject: Re: [Coral-List] The Diving
Industry and Ocean Conservation
>
>Here are two things I've heard
expressed, often forcefully!
>
>** The NOP is a creation of the Obama
administration, and has no apparent
>Congressional support, there may even
be some enmity there. As such, it
>will likely go away when the Obama
administration goes away, as did the
Bush
>Ocean Action Plan before it. Even the
Obama administration has not been
>particularly supportive of the NOP, at
least not with money. NOAA is the
>plan's biggest advocate, but now NOAA
has a new administrator....so who
>knows?
>
>** DEMA is probably correct in not
getting behind the NOP. Why waste the
>effort and any silver bullets they may
have? Relationships between NOAA and
>the dive industry have not been
especially cordial, so the level of trust
>toward NOP/NOAA is low.
>
>In my view,
>The folks on this list are quite
supportive of the NOP because they take it
>at face value and there are parts of
it they like a lot.
>DEMA is not supportive of the NOP,
because they distrust the players and
>motives, and there are some parts of
the NOP they don't like at all.
>
>I think one can get more legacy from
discussions with Congress in the many
>coastal states, than by lining up
behind sweeping administration policies
>that probably doomed.
>
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