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Dive Against Debris® Specialty Diver Course

Are you interested in collecting marine debris? If so, you can get to practice weighing, sorting, and recording what you remove from the water after you finish diving.

The PADI Dive Against Debris® Diver Specialty course teaches you more about ocean plastic and how to organise trash cleanups to keep your local diving and snorkeling sites healthier.

Importance of Ocean Cleanups | Contents

Note: The single dive specialty course counts as one of the adventure dives in the PADI® Advanced Open Water Course.The Dive Against Debris certification may also count towards the Master Scuba Diver. Check through the extensive PADI® Specialty Courses list for further details (listed from A to Z).

This continuing education course focuses on helping new divers become volunteers who make a difference (part of a citizen scientist movement).

As a result, building a global database about oceanic debris and pollution problems helps to spotlight the impact it has on our planet.

What is the Meaning of Specialty Diver?

In simple terms, a Specialty Diver is someone with enhanced scuba diving abilities beyond entry level certifications (e.g. Discover Programs, Scuba Diver, Open Water Diver).

Signing up for specialist scuba courses is the ideal path to take if you want to learn new techniques and experience different kinds of underwater exploration.

Furthermore, you will get the best opportunity to acquire superior knowledge and skills in the diving activities that interest you most because a 'Specialty Instructor' will be supervising the training.

Age, Depth, and Prerequisite Certification

There are minimum age requirements and maximum depth limits for all the specialties that require open water training dives.

As a result, before you can enrol in the PADI Dive Against Debris Specialty course you will need to be:

Number of Days: One (1) Day (minimum)

Open Water Training Dives: One (1)

Maximum Depth: Depends on age and certification level

Important: Even though scuba certifications do not expire, we recommend taking the PADI Scuba Diving Refresher if you have been inactive from diving for a while (e.g. longer than six months).


Why Become a Dive Against Debris Specialist?

So, what exactly does it mean to be a Dive Against Debris diver? In simple terms, it refers to people that take direct action to help protect and conserve the oceans.

As such, qualified PADI Divers can help tackle marine debris head on and collect critical survey data every time they go diving. In turn, marine researchers and conservation policymakers use this vital information for their preservation efforts.

Besides being an important contributor to the largest global underwater database in the world, you would also play a vital role in helping to reduce, and remove, marine debris by 50% by the year 2030 (targeted countries).

PADI AWARE Dive Against Debris Specialty Certification in Pattaya, Thailand.Some of the best resource material that students can use during and after the training includes:

Note: You can also share your debris story on various social media platforms using the following hashtags [#DiveAgainstDebris | #EveryDiveaSurveyDive | #UglyJourneyofTrash | #AWAREImpact]


Digital Learning Programs for Self-Study

In general, it is much easier for divers with a busy schedule to choose the online learning option to start scuba lessons.

Being able to complete the independent study portion of a multiple day course offers you some flexibility and convenience.

As long as you have a computer or a mobile device, you will be able to study the knowledge development portion at your own pace (online or offline).

Dive Against Debris eLearning: Up to Four (4) Hours

If you sign up for PADI eLearning® you can complete the self-study assignments online (for around 2,500 THB).

Following that, you would need to contact the dive shop to perform the required scuba training dive with a PADI Instructor to finish the course.


Dive Against Debris Specialist Diver: What Will You Learn?

You and your instructor will plan and execute a training dive, usually in a small group (e.g. using the scuba buddy system. The aim is to recognise, and then remove, items of marine litter and waste products.

To begin with, you will need to show appropriate judgement about which objects need to be removed from the water, paying special attention to plastic pollution.

After you complete the dive, you will get to carry out a survey (and record and report the data). Additional parts of the training will include:

  • Becoming a citizen scientist for the benefit of marine conservation.
  • Conducting an underwater survey.
  • Learning how to make a difference for the protection and preservation of the oceans.
  • Learning how to identify which objects need to be removed from the ocean - and which do not. You will also weigh, sort, record, and dispose appropriately of all waste items.
  • Helping to keep the dive sites in your area clean from ocean plastic and detritus.
  • Joining forces with a team of environmental divers and contributing to the PADI AWARE Foundation™ global database.

The PADI AWARE Foundation™ is a nonprofit organisation, designated in 1992. It helps to unite divers and other concerned individuals about the plight of coral reefs and how to conserve underwater environments.

Note: Most participants who want to become a marine debris expert will be scuba divers. Even so, our blog about snorkeling caters for other water sport enthusiasts.



Specialist Equipment and Diving Gear

You will need to be wearing traditional scuba gear for the open water training dive. Other specialist diving equipment that you'll use, may also include:


FAQ Section and Medical Questionnaire Form

Can I Get the PADI Dive Against Debris® Specialty Certification Online?

There are many scuba courses you can do online, and some offline too. You would need to check whether this particular course is available through digital learning.

Is there a Simple Strategy for Identifying Reef Fishes?

Yes. Beginners will find it easier to focus on determining actual fish families (e.g. ray-finned fishes with the class Actinopterygii). Unless you're a marine biologist, there is no need to learn every single species known to man.

What Happens if I Touch an Underwater Organism?

Divers share a common responsibility to protect and conserve nature. As a result, passive interaction with aquatic animals helps to safeguard the habitats of delicate and sensitive sea life.

What is the PADI Underwater Naturalist Course?

There are several reasons why combining the PADI Underwater Naturalist Specialty course with the AWARE Fish Identification Specialty is a good idea.

For example:

  1. You will observe new features and animal behaviours (even on the dive sites you are familiar with).
  2. Learning more about symbiotic relationships and underwater ecology will help to make you a more knowledgeable diver.
  3. The majority of scuba divers fail to understand the importance of aquatic plant and animal habitats.

When Should You Do a Scuba Refresher?

Suppose you don't go diving for more than six months. There is a simple way to refresh the knowledge and skills that you already learned.

After a long period of inactivity, taking the PADI ReActivate® program will help you brush up on the safety procedures and scuba diving fundamentals.

Medical Requirements: Free Download

You must be in good physical and mental health and be medically fit for recreational scuba diving. You can review the Diver Medical Participant Questionnaire Online to check whether you need to be evaluated by a physician.

It is not appropriate to ask dive staff (e.g. divemasters, instructors) for medical advice or clearance to go diving. Instead, you can contact the Divers Alert Network (DAN) if you have questions about your medical fitness to dive.


Project AWARE Dive Against Debris® Specialty Certification in Thailand Price 5,500 THB*

We have qualified instructors and expert dive guides who can teach in several languages, including English, Thai, and Chinese.

The price includes (all):

Blue Check MarkBoat trips (with free soft drinks served on board)

Blue Check MarkProfessional tuition from a "Private Scuba" Instructor

Blue Check MarkFree rental of required diving equipment (including a dive computer)

Blue Check MarkPADI Dive Against Debris® Specialty Manual and Certification Card

Blue Check MarkHotel transfers within Pattaya City limits

Important: You may be making two (2) scuba training dives in the same day. If so, the PADI flying after diving guidelines say you need to wait a minimum of eighteen (18) hours after the second dive before you go to altitude. Please send us an email if you need further information.


YouTube Video and Knowledge Base for Participants

Most of the information and advice in this page focuses on scuba diving activities conducted from different types of watercraft.

We also have a list of blog articles about snorkeling which relate to popular boating adventures - especially in Thailand.

Help Guides about Coral Reef Formations

Note: The short video [1:59 seconds] presented by PADI highlights some of the reasons why underwater reefs attract scuba divers and why we need more ambassadors to protect the Blue Planet.


What Comes after PADI Dive Against Debris Specialty?

Almost all scuba divers enjoy hovering around ridges of rock formed by the growth and deposit of different corals. So what comes next?

This non-diving certification has links to the best Specialty Courses offered by the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI).

Even so, Dive Against Debris® Certification combines well with several other specialty courses such as:

Note: All course prices for diving are subject to change and assume that all prerequisites have been met to start the training. Click here to contact the team at Private Scuba in Thailand to make a booking or send an enquiry.

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