Using an educational video-briefing to mitigate the ecological impacts of scuba diving

ABSTRACT

Recreational scuba diving is rapidly increasing, and the negative impacts to marine reef biota are of conservation concern. Educational approaches have been tested to mitigate diver damage to benthic organisms, but logistical constraints impede their implementation in many locations. We investigated the behaviors of scuba divers in terms of their contacts with benthic organisms, and assessed how an educational video-briefing caused changes in diver behavior. The video provided environmental information to divers, and enhanced their use of low-impact diving techniques. Divers who received the video-briefing exhibited significantly lower rates of contact with and damage to the benthos, than did divers who did not receive a briefing. The level of diving experience did not correlate with the rate of benthic contact in either group of divers. Male divers and photographers both contacted the benthos significantly less, and female divers and photographers both caused significantly less damage when they viewed the video-briefing prior to diving. Our findings highlight the importance of easily implemented, standardized educational approaches such as the use of video-briefings to mitigate the impacts of scuba diving. This study adds to the framework of tested strategies available to support the sustainable use of marine areas by the diving tourism industry.

KEYWORDS:

• Recreational diving
• marine protected area
• marginal reef
• environmental education
• coral damage
• tourism management

Acknowledgments

We thank the Associação das Operadoras de Mergulho de Arraial do Cabo and ICMBio – Reserva Extrativista Marinha de Arraial do Cabo (through V. Lasmar and R. Farias) for the provision of research permits and support. LCT Chaves and CAMM Cordeiro and four anonymous reviewers provided comments on the manuscript. We would also like to thank JP Krajewski and E Faria-Júnior for video-briefing production.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro [grant number 111.210/2014 to CELF]; scholarship from the Brazilian Ministry of Science and Technology to the first author.

Notes on contributors

Vinicius J. Giglio

Vinicius J. Giglio is a PhD candidate in the Department of Ecology at the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. His research interests focus on management of recreational diving, marine ecology and environmental conservation.

Osmar J. Luiz

Osmar J. Luiz is a post-doctoral associate researcher at Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Australia. His research interests include marine and freshwater ecology, biodiversity conservation, and management of recreational diving.

Nanette E. Chadwick

Nanette E. Chadwick is an associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Auburn University. Her research interests include coral reef ecology, cnidarian biology, and impacts of recreational diving.

Carlos E. L. Ferreira

Carlos E.L. Ferreira is an associate professor in the Department of Marine Biology at the Universidade Federal Fluminense. His research focuses on reef systems ecology and conservation.