Diving Science & Safety Program

PROGRAM RESPONSIBILITIES

Dive Operations Plan review and approval

It is the responsibility of the Dive Science and Safety Program to review all dive operation plans submitted for approval. The plan should be submitted at least five days prior to undertaking a research dive to permit review. If the dive is in anyway an increased risk dive, such as a cave dive or a deep dive, it should be submitted earlier as it will require the entire board review it prior to approval or disapproval. The Dive Operations Plan (DOP) should clearly state the anticipated environmental conditions to be encountered, diver qualifications, and the risks anticipated and the actions/plans formulated to minimize or cope with the risks noted. Several programs approved in the past include steps such as prior contact with the USCG, or the EMS/hyperbaric chamber flight crew to clarifiy necessary contact conditions for any emergency such as helicopter landing site, ambulance meeting site, arranging for on-site decompression chamber and attendent coverage,etc. Approval will be provided and a project number assigned by which to identify all related activities, records, and documents with the DSSP. The DOP will be approved as an individual dive or dive period or as a blanket dive project good for a specific period of time. The maximum time any DOP is valid with out up-date/renewal is one year.

Diver Qualifications Evaluation and Training

All new divers must complete a set of documents covering medical history, experience and training, liablity waiver, a Physical Exam, and a water skills and knowledge evaluation. These are currently at the level of completion for a basic scuba class to permit new and recently trained divers to participate in projects which pose no complex advanced skills needs. If the project includes complex or at risk activities further evaluation may be necessary. Specific skills are listed on the diver forms packet. In addition, all divers must submit copies of their diver certification cards, their CPR/First Aid and Oxygen Provider training. The latter items must be current according to the standards of the certifying agency, i.e. ARC cpr is good for one year, AHA cpr is good for two years, etc..

Diver Training

Training in diving may be with any agency. Advanced training when needed may also be with the appropriate agency or in some cases may be provided by the DSSP or project with which the diver is participating. Specific skills such as use of Surface Supplied Air, Nitrox, Side Scan Sonar, etc may be taught by the project dive master or scientist, given that an outline and plan have been presented to the DSSP for review and approval.

Program Activity Oversight

The Dive Locker is intended to provide a resource for the dive projects to obtain supplimental gear and services as qualifications and budget permits. To this end, the Locker has a limited number of regulators, cylinders, and backpacks. Cylinder visual inspection and some regulator repair/overhaul is provided upon request. Training in specific skills such as the use of mixed gas is provided as well as training as an Oxygen Provider and first aid/cpr provider. In some cases, references to additional cadre of divers can be arrange. Reciprocity letters are available to other institutions upon request.

Decompression Table Consideration

The DSSP has reviewed the decompression tables in use throughout the country and after trying the Canadian tables for three years, decided that the US Navy tables are the most expedient at this time. These in one of several formats are the only authorized tables. The NOAA Nitrox I and II tables are also authorized for those programs using nitrox. The use of Equivalent Air Depth formulation is an accepted mode of computing nitrox decompression use also. It is strongly recommended that any dive which takes the diver within two groups of the no-decompression limits take a minimum safety stop of 5 minutes at 15 feet. (Alternatively, the Jeppeson version of the USN tables which provides both Navy NDL and Doppler NDL may be used. The doppler limits should mandate the safety stop.)

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