NOAA DIVING PROGRAM 2010 Annual Report NOAA Diving Center 7600 Sand Point Way NE Seattle, WA 98115 NOAA Diving Program Executive Summary This report highlights some of the significant events and achievements accomplished by NOAA divers throughout the world during fiscal year 2010. NOAA divers perform a wide variety of underwater tasks in support of NOAA’s mission. During the year NOAA divers, and reciprocity partners, conducted dives across the globe, from the Red Sea to Alaska, Rhode Island to Wake Island, the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of California, and the Caribbean Sea to the Puget Sound. Numerous technical reports, peer-reviewed publications and presentations at national and international scientific meetings were made possible by data collected during these operations. Statistically FY10 was a very safe and productive year for the NOAA Diving Program (NDP). Despite a 4% decrease in number of divers (466), the Program experienced a 4% increase in the number of dives performed (13,987) and a 12% increase in total hours of dive time (9,099). Of these dives, 71% (9,873) were associated with scientific observation and/or data collection; 16% (2,247) involved non-scientific tasks, such as mooring installation or maintenance, and 13% (1,869) were non-duty dives including those associated with dive training and maintenance of dive proficiency (see Chart 1). From a safety standpoint, the Program experienced three cases of ear/sinus barotrauma and one laceration requiring stitches, none of which resulted in loss of work time. No cases of decompression illness were reported. The activities in this report represent a small fraction of the operations conducted by NOAA divers on a daily basis. Diving is a hazardous, yet vitally important activity used to help NOAA accomplish its mission and NOAA divers are to be commended for volunteering their services in support of this effort. It is due to the dedication of these individuals that NOAA continues to be the premiere Federal civilian diving organization in the country. FY10 Dives by Category Observation/monitoring Data/sample collection Installation/construction Search/recovery Maintenance/repair Inspection/survey Test/evaluation Photo/video Dive Support Training/Proficiency Non-Duty Other 17% 3% 2% 3% 2% 35% 1% 25% 3% 1% 9% 1% 23% Chart 1- FY10 Dives by Category (dive purpose). Page 1 NOAA Diving Program NOAA Fisheries Service The 17 diving units of the NOAA Fisheries Service (Fisheries) supported a wide range of projects across all regions of the country during FY2010. The Pacific Islands and Southeast Fishery Science Centers had the highest tempo of diving activity; however critical projects were completed throughout the region. Fisheries continued to lead other Line Offices (LOs) in the number of divers, the number of dives and the amount of bottom time (Table 1). Scientific dives outnumbered working dives nearly two to one. Direct observation and sample collection, habitat restoration, collection of telemetry data, ship husbandry, public outreach and safety/training were some of the categories of activities conducted this year. Diving skills training, rescue drills, fitness tests and check-out dives for new equipment and techniques were important factors contributing to a year without any significant diving injuries to Fisheries divers. The first on-duty dive by a NOAA Administrator was completed when Dr. Jane Lubchenco dove on a coral nursery in Key Largo, FL during Earth Day events supported by the Fisheries Diving Unit in St. Petersburg, FL. Table 1: FY10 NOAA Diving Activity Bottom Time Divers Dives (hours) Fisheries 182 7047 4941.22 NOS 162 4697 2971.13 OAR 9 126 63.18 OMAO 113 2117 1124.1 TOTALS 466 13987 9099.63 Administrative task loading on Unit Diving Supervisors (UDSs) continues to increase with this trend likely to persist in FY 2011 as the Dive Unit Safety Assessment (DUSA) inspection program becomes fully operational. A significant allocation of time remained devoted to training activities, particularly for reciprocity divers. FY2010 was the second full year of inclusion of diving activities in the performance plans for all divemasters and UDSs. Approximately 30% of UDSs accepted an offer by the Line Office Diving Officer (LODO) to brief rating officials on the conduct of their assigned diving duties. The establishment of a LODO budget by Fisheries HQ allowed all units to request upgrades of safety equipment and all requests were fulfilled in FY2010. The largest number of Fisheries dives was in support of the Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP). Habitat conservation, fishery independent monitoring, and coral restoration were other significant beneficiaries of diving activities. An abbreviated list of the species studied includes: abalone, conch, staghorn, and elkhorn coral, hake, lingcod, mutton snapper, red king crab, rockfish, lionfish (invasive on east coast), scallop, several salmon species and several grouper species. Nearly 20 peer reviewed publications and numerous presentations at national and international scientific meetings were made possible by data collected by NOAA Fisheries' divers. A brief synopsis of each diving unit's activities follows. The Auke Bay, AK unit continued a project evaluating growth and survival of shallow corals after trawl disturbance and continued several projects on life history (corals and sponges), mapping (eelgrass), and stock enhancement (salmon post-release behavior). Aquaculture maintenance dives afforded considerable cost savings to the agency. A new study was initiated to evaluate the efficacy of sonar techniques to locate derelict crab pots, examine them Page 2 NOAA Diving Program in situ, and remove them from the marine environment. Several reports were published and several peer-reviewed scientific publications are in press or preparation as a result of these diving activities. The majority of the Galveston, TX unit's diving was focused in the Caribbean with projects on the recovery of conch populations in the United States Virgin Islands, productivity and disease in Acropora corals in the northern Caribbean, and improving trap designs to reduce bycatch mortality of reef herbivores. A cooperative project was also conducted with the University of the Virgin Islands to remove lost fish traps considered to be marine debris. Honolulu, HI dive operations continued at a high level in 2010. Research cruises were completed to Johnston Atoll, Howland Island, Baker Island, American Samoa Islands, Jarvis Island, Palmyra Atoll, Kingman Reef, and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI). 40,000 lbs of marine debris were removed from the NWHI. Deep (trimix/decompression) surveys were completed on mesophotic coral reefs in the NWHI and Maui in a cooperative project with the State of Hawaii. Numerous dives were focused on the installation and recovery of oceanographic instrumentation (Figure 1). Data collected from many of these surveys were published in a variety of peer reviewed scientific journals. Kodiak, AK completed the third year of a settlement study on larval and early benthic stage red king crab as a prelude to a possible stock enhancement program. General research on life history, behavior, and habitat use of red king and tanner crab and Pacific octopus continues. Unit divers supplied all marine organisms for the interpretive aquariums at the laboratory, which had over 17,000 visitors in 2010. The La Jolla, CA unit continued the Point Loma Gastropod density and movement survey as well as a temporal dynamics study of Figure 1 – Instrument recovery by Hawaii diver Kevin giant seabass and other indigenous fishes in the La Jolla Ecological Lino. Photo courtesy of the NMFS PIFSC. Reserve (the latter in collaboration with Scripps Oceanographic Institute). La Jolla unit divers also supported a white abalone identification and nearest neighbor project. Aquaculture maintenance and ship husbandry dives resulted in significant cost savings to the laboratory and the fleet. Long Beach, CA continued monitoring of seagrass, kelp, and rocky reef habitats, evaluating the suitability of habitat enhancement and mitigation sites, and other on-going habitat assessment activities. Reports on seagrass surveys were shared with the Morro Bay National Estuary Program and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Eelgrass samples were sent to the University of Groningen (Netherlands) for genetic characterization, which will ultimately lead to a cooperative research product. Information obtained from diving on natural reefs, artificial reefs, and other benthic characterizations are being used to guide placement of artificial reefs for the Montrose Settlement Program. Projects at the Miami, FL laboratory utilized data from over 3,500 dives in 2010. Roughly 1,060 of these dives were conducted by NOAA divers with the remainder completed by reciprocity divers from a variety of academic and governmental agencies. The majority of projects were conducted in the Florida Keys including the Dry Tortugas and Riley’s Hump. Fishery independent surveys of reef fishes and studies of all aspects of coral biology were the primary goals of most of these dives (Figure 2). Miami unit divers also conducted several missions in support of oil spill response activities related to the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) event in the Gulf of Mexico. Collaborative projects were undertaken with numerous academic, state, and federal partners. Several peer reviewed publications and technical memoranda resulted from diving supported activities. Page 3 NOAA Diving Program Milford, CT and several