Marine Life & Conservation
Divetech’s Guardian of the Reef Making Himself at Home at Northwest Point
Since his celebrated sinking on April 12, more that 750 divers, both visitors and locals, have visited Cayman’s newest dive attraction, the Guardian of the Reef. The bronze sculpture sits on a sandy flat in 60 feet of water just offshore from the Divetech dive shop at Lighthouse Point on Grand Cayman’s Northwest Point, and watches over the reef of this popular dive site.
“Swimming out from shore to see him, it is as if he is greeting you when you arrive in his realm − welcoming you and sort of saying ‘look at the wonders of my realm’,” says Everett Turner, a part-time Lighthouse Point resident and long-time Divetech customer, who was present for the sinking celebrations.
Local underwater cinematographer Frans De Backer recalls his first dive at the site. “As soon as you discover the Guardian in the deep beside the mini-wall at Lighthouse Point, a feeling of mystery overwhelms you. The mystery continues as you approach the 13-foot bronze statue, half Seahorse, half Mythological Warrior and it’s becoming even stronger as you start diving closely around this morphed creature and look him in the eyes. Sculptor Simon Morris created the eyes in a way that wherever you are, the statue is looking at you and keeping an eye on you, like a true Guardian should.”
“Although the guardian was very impressive on land he’s even more magnificent underwater,” says photographer Ellen Cuylaerts, who first met him in Orlando at the Dive Equipment and Manufacturers Association’s (DEMA) annual convention. “The eye contact with him gives you chills in a good way, makes you humble and inspires you to help him with his task to protect and guard the reefs!”
Divetech owners Jay and Nancy Easterbrook purchased the sculpture as part of the company’s 20th anniversary, and they say this is the Guardian’s primary purpose – to inspire ocean conservation. The popularity of the new dive star is good news for the environment because one dollar from every dive made at the site will be used for ocean conservation education in the local schools. The Easterbrooks are hoping to raise $20,000 the first year, and the money will help support the West Bay Eco Warriors after-school swim/dive programme run by Emma Nicholsby and potentially buy classroom material from Annie Crawley, also known as “Ocean Annie” who has created several conservation programs for kids.
“The Guardian is symbolic for the task that we humans have neglected for decades: we have to take care of our reefs and our oceans. Therefore, I think it’s a great idea that a portion of the dive fee is going to conservation education,” remarks Frans De Backer.
“The Guardian of the Reef is a uniquely wonderful and appropriate figure, aptly named for his purpose of promoting awareness of our fragile oceans,” agrees Everett Turner. “To me, he represents a powerful creature who at the same time is also fragile just like the oceans. They are a very powerful force filled with life forms yet those life forms are fragile and we are in danger of losing them if we don’t take action.”
Divetech began offering dive services on Grand Cayman in 1994 and has always been a champion for Cayman’s underwater world. Nancy and Jay Easterbrook say the Guardian of the Reef and this conservation program allows them to give back to the community.
“It’s been 20 wonderful years, wonderful ocean, wonderful people and we wanted to give back to the community. Seeing him out there now with divers enjoying and being inspired by him, it’s more than we expected, more than we could have hoped for” commented Jay Easterbrook.
As the Guardian of the Reef makes himself at home on the reef, his neighbors, the sea creatures that live there, are also getting to know him. Several days after he was placed on the site, divers found a sea horse not too far from the sculpture. Everett Turner, who as an underwater photographer scours the reef there, looks forward to seeing what creatures and fish he attracts.
“He is resting not too far from some of our favourite areas for finding dwarf frog fish, pipe horses and a multitude of other macro creatures,” he says. “I am hoping he might attract some schools of grunts and jacks and some of the other reef fish that are found just around the corner from him.”
Just getting to know the new kid on the block is fun for Divetech customers, as well as staff members.
“It is awesome to drop down and be face to face with the Guardian of the Reef!” says Emma Nicholsby, who frequently free dives the site with friends.
On a night dive Kara Owens was impressed. “It’s almost eerie coming along this huge lone statue in the pitch of night, Goosebumps!”
“The Guardian is the perfect addition to one of Grand Cayman’s best reefs, yet when you see him you get the sense he’s been there a long time, and will be there a long time, watching over the reef,” says Nina Baxa.
About Divetech
Divetech is a IANTD Platinum Facility / TDI/SDI Instructor Trainer Facility / PADI 5-Star Resort / PADI TecRec Facility / PADI Project Aware Center / SSI Resort / IANTD & SSI Free Diving Center / BSAC Resort / National Geographic Center/ Scuba Rangers Club / Universal Training Facility / PADI Swim School / DAN Technical Field Research Station full service dive operator with facilities at Cobalt Coast Dive Resort on the tranquil Northwest shore of Boatswain’s Bay, and Lighthouse Point on Northwest Point Road, both located in West Bay just a few miles north of the hustle and bustle of Seven Mile Beach.
Considered one of Grand Cayman’s leading dive operations, Divetech has been providing quality dive services since 1994, and it has earned a reputation as the place to go in Grand Cayman for quality training from kids to trimix with 18 Instructors on staff. Divetech is Green Globe Certified and is a recipient of the Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence in 2014 and the PADI Green Star Award. Divetech offers great dive and room packages with its resort partner Cobalt Coast Dive Resort, which has established a reputation for laid back luxury and friendly West Indian hospitality, offering 20 suites and villas, full restaurant and bar, pool and award winning customer service.
For more information
Call: +1 (345) 946-5658
Web: www.divetech.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DiveTech
Twitter: www.twitter.com/DiveTech
The Ocean Cleanup, the global non-profit project, has removed a verified all-time total of ten million kilograms (22 million lbs.) of trash from oceans and rivers around the world – approximately the same weight as the Eiffel Tower.
To complete its mission of ridding the oceans of plastic, The Ocean Cleanup uses a dual strategy: cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) to remove the plastic already afloat in the oceans, while stopping the flow of plastic from the world’s most polluting rivers.
Through cleaning operations in the GPGP and in rivers in eight countries, the cumulative total of trash removed has now surpassed ten million kilograms. This milestone demonstrates the acceleration of The Ocean Cleanup’s impact, while underlining the astonishing scale of the plastic pollution problem and the need for continued support and action.
While encouraging for the mission, this milestone is only a staging point: millions more tons of plastic still pollute our oceans and The Ocean Cleanup intends to continue learning, improving and innovating to solve this global catastrophe.
This announcement comes as governments from around the world meet to continue negotiations to develop a new legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution at INC4 in Ottawa, Canada. Representatives of The Ocean Cleanup will be in attendance and the organization will be urging decision-makers to collaborate towards a comprehensive and ambitious global treaty which addresses plastic at all stages of its life cycle and in all marine environments worldwide, including in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
It is encouraging to see that the need for remediation is reflected in the various options for potential treaty provisions. It is essential that the final treaty contains clear targets for the remediation of legacy plastic pollution, and reduction of riverine plastic emissions.
Tackling plastic pollution requires innovative and impactful solutions. The treaty should therefore incentivize the innovation ecosystem by fostering innovations that make maximal use of data, technology and scientific knowledge – such as those designed and deployed by The Ocean Cleanup.
‘After many tough years of trial and error, it’s amazing to see our work is starting to pay off – and I am proud of the team who has brought us to this point.’ said Boyan Slat, Founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup. ‘While we still have a long way to go, our recent successes fill us with renewed confidence that the oceans can be cleaned.’
The Ocean Cleanup was founded in 2013 and captured its first plastic in 2019, with the first confirmed catch in the GPGP coming soon after the deployment of Interceptor 001 in Jakarta, Indonesia. After surpassing one million kilograms of trash removed in early 2022, the non-profit project has since progressed to the third iteration of its GPGP cleaning solution, known as System 03, and a network of Interceptors currently covering rivers in eight countries, with more deployments set for 2024.
About The Ocean Cleanup
The Ocean Cleanup is an international non-profit organization that develops and scales technologies to rid the world’s oceans of plastic. They aim to achieve this goal through a dual strategy: stemming the inflow via rivers and cleaning up the legacy plastic that has already accumulated in the ocean. For the latter, The Ocean Cleanup develops large-scale systems to efficiently concentrate the plastic for periodic removal. This plastic is tracked and traced through DNV’s chain of custody model to certify claims of origin when recycling it into new products. To curb the tide via rivers, The Ocean Cleanup has developed Interceptor™ solutions to halt and extract riverine plastic before it reaches the ocean. Founded in 2013 by Boyan Slat, The Ocean Cleanup now employs a broadly multi-disciplined team of approximately 140. The foundation is headquartered in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
For more information, visit: theoceancleanup.com and follow @theoceancleanup on social media.
Marine Life & Conservation
Steve Backshall to headline Shark Trust’s flagship event: For the Love of Sharks
Join a host of amazing, shark loving, speakers including Steve Backshall and the Shark Trust team for an evening celebrating shark conservation at the Royal Geographical Society in London this November.
Date: 29th November 2024
Time: 6-10pm
Location: Royal Geographical Society, London
Tickets: https://www.sharktrust.org/Event/flos24
The event will be a celebration of all things shark. Those lucky enough to get hold of tickets will hear from engaging guest speakers with a passion for sharks.
The line-up includes (*subject to change if unforeseen circumstances arise)
Steve Backshall: One of television’s busiest presenters, BAFTA award-winning wildlife expert Steve has been passionate about the wild world ever since he was young.
Steve’s impressive TV career has taken him all around the world, investigating a wide array of species and environments. Steve has filmed over 100 hours of children’s wildlife programmes with the BAFTA award winning Deadly 60 franchise and recently, with Sky Nature, for his new series ‘Whale with Steve Backshall’. He has been a patron for the Shark Trust for 10 years.
Simon Rogerson: is a photojournalist specialising in natural history, diving and the sea.
He is editor of SCUBA magazine, the official journal of the British Sub-Aqua Club. Simon started his career as a crime reporter but gravitated towards his ‘less depressing’ interest in underwater exploration, joining the staff of DIVE magazine in 1999. In 2005 he was named ‘Editor of the Year’ in the PPA’s Independent Publishing Awards. Simon also works as a freelance writer, contributing frequently to the Sunday Times and Telegraph, in addition to BBC Wildlife, Esquire, and a host of international diving magazines. He is the author of a book, Dive Red Sea, published by Ultimate Sports. Now based in Berkshire, Simon has been a Patron of the Shark Trust for 20 years.
More speakers to be announced soon. Head to the Shark Trust website to learn more.
The evening will also allow guests the final chance to see the Oceanic 31, shark art exhibition. Some of the artwork will be auctioned/raffled at the event, while the rest will be auctioned online to raise money for the Shark Trust Oceanic Programme.
For the Love of Sharks is an evening with something for everyone who is interested and fascinated by sharks. Join the Shark Trust, their Patrons, Trustees and Staff, along with a host of supporters for this celebration of shark conservation.
For more information or to buy a ticket: https://www.sharktrust.org/Event/flos24
-
News3 months agoCapturing Critters in Lembeh Underwater Photography Workshop 2024: Event Roundup
-
Marine Life & Conservation Blogs3 months agoCreature Feature: Swell Sharks
-
Blogs2 months agoMurex Resorts: Passport to Paradise!
-
Blogs2 months agoDiver Discovering Whale Skeletons Beneath Ice Judged World’s Best Underwater Photograph
-
Gear Reviews3 weeks agoGEAR REVIEW – Revolutionising Diving Comfort: The Sharkskin T2 Chillproof Suit
-
Gear Reviews3 months agoGear Review: Oceanic+ Dive Housing for iPhone
-
Marine Life & Conservation2 months agoSave the Manatee Club launches brand new webcams at Silver Springs State Park, Florida
-
News2 months agoPADI Teams Up with Wellness Brand Neuro to Drive Ocean Change and Create a Blue State of Mind