Impact of Climate Change on Scuba Diving

SCUBA and the Environment: A Paradox
The relationship between SCUBA diving and environmental and marine health is a strange, tenuous, and paradoxical one. On the one hand, diving activities and the ancillary effects of diving-related tourism have threatened and in many cases, outright killed coral reef systems (McVeigh, 2018). Popular diving sites have in many cases been irreversibly damaged. For example, busy sites are known to have “more broken corals, a lower species diversity and a change in fish behavior, compared with other sites in the same areas,” (McVeigh, 2018, p. 1). On the other hand, SCUBA diving and the related travel industry may be positioned to have the most positive impact on saving those very same reefs and marine areas. Healthy coral reefs, clean water, safe sites, and sustainable tourism are all integral to the financial success of the diving industry. In fact, SCUBA leaders have been paying increased attention to the ways climate change has been affecting diving and diving related tourism. The SCUBA industry has in fact become a leader in helping showcase the effects of climate change on every aspect of marine life, as volunteer divers from around the world have been actively participating in surveys detailing their first-hand observations of changing marine life and ecosystems (De Gabriele, 2017).
Main Effects of Climate Change
SCUBA divers and scientists alike have systematically documented the most notable effects of climate change on marine life and coral reef systems. Reef death, reef bleaching, acidification, and other types of degradation of reefs is one of the main concerns. After all, dead reefs mean a dead diving industry. With reef death also comes fewer schools of fish, yet another nail in the coffin of the industry. The boats that transport divers to their sites also contribute to these problems, but climate change has been having a much more sinister, pervasive, and global impact on the industry. Some SCUBA industry leaders warn that if climate change continues apace, the entire diving industry could be washed away in just twenty years (Mowery, 2017). An industry that generates an estimated $36 billion per year cannot afford to ignore climate change (“How Climate Change Threatens Marine Tourism,” 2018). In fact, diving is one of the fastest growing tourism sectors overall McVeigh, 2018). Reef death and declining populations of fish are only part of the problem. Climate change also affects the nature of SCUBA tourism, threatening to make areas popular among divers inaccessible or even uninhabitable. More frequent and more devastating storms, erosion of coastal regions, and algal blooms are a few of the problems popular marine regions experience due to climate change (“How Climate Change Threatens Marine Tourism,” 2018).
Detailed Impacts
Climate change generally involves a steady warming of the ocean water temperatures, with systemic impacts on marine life throughout the world. The general pattern for marine animals is that warmer waters attract or generate greater numbers of fish species, leaving the cooler waters richer in invertebrates such as crustaceans (De Gabriele, 2017). Climate change is already causing different distribution and migration patterns of fish, with species moving into geographic zones they had otherwise avoided. The redistribution of fish among ocean waters may lead to unintended effects on the diving industry, potentially opening up new and uncharted areas for SCUBA activities but diverting attention away from the regions that had been perennially popular. Unfortunately, the results of climate change on SCUBA are not necessarily beneficial given that when new species of fish move into new areas, they disrupt the local ecosystem in dramatic ways. Like invasive species anywhere, the newcomers may prey on the endemic species or compete with predators on the same level of the food chain—either way causing potential endangerment or extinction of species (De Gabriele, 2017). Divers will cease to pay for services when the unique species of fish become extinct, or when locating key species or schools of fish becomes all but impossible due to the unpredictable nature of the way climate change impacts localized ecosystems. Mitigating damage will be all but impossible without immediately mitigating climate change.
Increased surface temperature in the world’s oceans has a major impact on the ways corals breathe and interact with the main algae species dwelling within them: zooxanthellae algae. The algae typically live within the coral cells, lending the corals their unique hues. When the coral expels waste, the algae feed off of that waste, in a classic symbiotic relationship. The algae in turn provide the coral with nutrients. When water temperatures rise, though, the coral may begin to eject the algae, causing them to starve and also causing them to lose their characteristic colors—the very same colors that make the corals attractive to divers in the first place (“Climate Change from a Diver’s Perspective,” n.d.). Starving algae is dead algae, and dead algae leads to a dead diving industry. Likewise, climate change contributes to acidification, which in turn causes the coral bleaching that results purely from the increased levels of carbon dioxide in the water (Wildenson, n.d.). Climate change is overall detrimental to SCUBA because it is detrimental to marine life.
Climate change is also changing diver access to special species including major marine predators like whales and sharks. Shark populations have already been decreasing, as have the efficacy of other top predators in the oceans. As predator numbers decline, naturally their prey flourishes—which is not necessarily beneficial for diving. The increased biomass in small fish and even zooplankton leads to a further increase in carbon dioxide levels in the ocean waters. Furthermore, the small fishes feed off of phytoplankton, in turn leading to a depletion of oxygen (“Climate Change from a Diver’s Perspective,” n.d.). Divers will become increasingly aware of the systemic changes to marine life and environments, as the fish and reefs they expect to see flourishing may change rapidly from year to year. Tourism operators may have trouble keeping pace with the changes caused by global warning, causing the diving industry to become practically nomadic.
As Below, So Above
Climate change impacts global meteorological and ecological systems, both above and below the surface of the ocean. The warming ocean temperatures result in changes in ocean currents, impacting the migration and distribution of fish at all rungs of the food chain ladder. However, the SCUBA industry takes place both on land and under the water; the bulk of SCUBA operations in fact take place on land, tied inextricably to the surrounding oceans via the tourism and hospitality industries. SCUBA operations set up in coastal areas are directly affected by climate change. Climate change may adversely impact the number of diving clients due to dying coral and dwindling fish populations, but climate change can have an equally detrimental effect on clientele due to extreme weather patterns and related natural disasters from landslides to tsunamis.
Coastal regions have already been adversely impacted by extreme weather events, which are likely to occur with greater frequency and intensity. Therefore, diving operators need to remain vigilant and develop resiliency. The economic impact on the industry will be tremendous, with many smaller operators unable to maintain their services when faced with skyrocketing insurance and maintenance costs after being faced with natural disasters. Landslides, tsunamis, and other natural disasters linked to climate change of course also impact the marine ecosystems tied to the local diving network. Silt and sediment spilling into the sea from landslides adversely affects marine life, as does the sudden influx of debris. Similarly, tsunamis temporarily but in some cases permanently change the balance of the marine ecosystem in addition to threatening the SCUBA business operations on land.
Remedies
The SCUBA industry is in a good position to contribute to positive and constructive dialogue on climate change. As a lucrative and growing industry that appeals to people from all walks of life, diving can enhance awareness of climate change while influencing local, regional, and global policy initiatives. Divers can also make waves in their area of operation by being more conscientious of the impact their industry has on the local marine biology and the surrounding ecosystems, in order to minimize the damage that is somewhat inevitably going to happen due to climate change. For example, diving operators need to use more sustainable methods of anchoring their boats, as anchors can kill coral. Operating between buoys is one way to reduce the impact diving boats have on already vulnerable reef systems (“Climate Change from a Diver’s Perspective,” n.d.).
Leaders in SCUBA also have a responsibility to train newcomers to diving better, informing them of their responsibilities for good environmental stewardship. Local communities and governments can become more actively involved in monitoring their diving operators to ensure compliance with best practices, while also putting into place ecologically friendly services that promote a more sustainable diving industry. Divers may respond to climate change by pressuring other stakeholders in tourism industries to become more conscious of their carbon footprint and to reduce their impact on pollution and local ecosystems. Because the diving industry depends on thriving marine life, healthy corals, and maintaining a fine balance in the ocean food chains, climate change has become a rallying cry to motivate a more sustainable, sensible tourism industry in general.





References
“Climate Change from a Diver’s Perspective,” (n.d.). Panama Dive Center. http://panamadivecenter.com/climate-change-from-a-divers-perspective/
DeGabriele, M. (2017). Citizen scientist scuba divers shed light on the impact of warming oceans on marine life. The Conversation. 20 Oct, 2017. http://theconversation.com/citizen-scientist-scuba-divers-shed-light-on-the-impact-of-warming-oceans-on-marine-life-85970
“How Climate Change Threatens Marine Tourism,” (2018). Scuba Diver. 14 May, 2018. https://www.scubadivermag.com/how-climate-change-threatens-marine-tourism/
McVeigh, K. (2018). Diving force: experts join forces to save the world's coral reefs. The Guardian. 29 Nov, 2018. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/nov/28/diving-force-experts-join-forces-to-save-the-worlds-coral-reefs
Mowery, L. (2017). Will the sport of SCUBA diving end by 2050? Forbes, 2 June, 2017. https://www.forbes.com/sites/lmowery/2017/06/02/will-the-sport-of-scuba-diving-end-by-2050/#3da0340e34db
Wilkenson, C. (n.d.). Confronting climate change. Underwater 360. https://www.uw360.asia/confronting-climate-change/