Dive the Famous Spooky Channel! Bay Islands Beach Resort, Roatan, Honduras

Hollywoodivers Opens Retail Operations
NAUI, PADI, TDI Instructor, Hal Wells and NAUI Instructor Bill Strong have opened Hollywoodivers in Los Angeles. They have been working as active dive professionals in Hollywood since 1990. They continue to offer all levels of training from snorkeling/freediving to instructor trainer.

The full service facility is located in Universal City. The address is 3575 Cahuenga Blvd. West #104 Los Angeles 90068. The shop is 1/4 mile south of Universal Studios Hollywood, south of the 101 freeway between the Lankershim and Universal Center Drive exits. The phone number is 323-969-9875 or 818-990-2279. The website, www.Hollywoodivers.com is being upgraded to offer information on their new products. The website was previously used to promote only travel and scuba training.

Hollywoodivers.com was originally started by Hal Wells to promote safety and efficiency within the underwater film production community. Hollywoodivers will continue to maintain a large database of active, rescue trained, talent, grips, stuntpeople and safety divers for referral to the film industry. In addition to providing this service, they will now offer fair and competitive pricing on top name scuba gear. The Hollywoodivers annual underwater film festival is September 21, 2002.

The new shop opened January 15. The hours are 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. weekends.

Free Supervised Beach Dives
For those interested in learning to shore dive safely, or those that need buddies to get wet more often, Hollywoodivers provides professional instructors/buddies for beach dives the first and third Tuesday of every month. The shore-based dive sites will be located throughout L.A. County. There is no charge to dive. Email Bill@hollywoodivers or call 323-969-9875 for current dive locations or stop by Hollywoodivers and pick up a schedule. Hollywoodivers is located at 3575 Cahuenga Blvd. West #104, Los Angeles.

Volunteer Divers Needed for Kelp Reforestation Project
Orange County CoastKeeper, a grassroots environmental group based in Newport Beach, is on a mission to restore Orange County’s once lush giant kelp forests. A test site in Crystal Cove State Park has already proven successful and the project is underway. Funded by a grant from NOAA, the CoastKeepers are looking for volunteer divers to help support their kelp reforestation project. Kelp sporophytes are being grown in the CoastKeeper laboratory and then the small plants are transported to a nursery area out on the reef. Interested divers should contact Nancy Caruso 949-723-5424.

Orange County’s CoastKeeper’s mission is to protect and preserve Orange County’s marine habitat and watershed through education, restoration, and enforcement. Orange County Coastkeeper seeks to identify sources of coastal water pollution and establish effective programs to eliminate them. Orange County CoastKeeper programs include kelp reforestation, water qualify and sediment monitoring, harbor patrols, and marine ecology education.

Divers Against Polluters Forms to Protect Dive Sites
Growing concern over water pollution has prompted divers in Southern California to form a new organization to protect the places where people dive. Divers Against Polluters, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, all-volunteer organization, conducts public-education campaigns and privately enforces anti-pollution laws in order to protect threatened aquatic resources.

Founded in April 2001, Divers Against Polluters has already been hard at work. The organization has a website that provides members of the public with the latest information on water quality along the nation’s entire coast and gives them an opportunity to report any water pollution they encounter. In addition, several pollution workshops and beach clean-ups are being scheduled. Divers Against Polluters has even taken legal action against several polluters in California and is planning to begin similar activities on the east coast soon. Seekey Cacciatore, the organization’s executive director, laughingly notes, “the diving community has welcomed us enthusiastically, but polluters have not. As one might imagine, we are encouraged by both reactions.”

Divers Against Polluters aspires to be the first national organization dedicated to protecting all aquatic resources for divers—freshwater lakes and caves as well as ocean waters. “Many national and regional organizations work on issues affecting divers,” Cacciatore points out, “but there’s no voice, no group that is dedicated to protecting our dive sites from water pollution. That’s the niche that Divers Against Polluters wants to fill.”

If you would like to become a member of, make a donation to, or obtain additional information from Divers Against Polluters, please call 301-962-6982 or visit http://www.diversagainstpolluters.org.

Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations For Nearshore Species In Effect for 2002
The 2002-2003 ocean sport fishing regulations for nearshore species, including rockfish, lingcod, California scorpionfish (sculpin), surfperch, and abalone are now in effect for all state waters. The regulations were approved Jan. 10 by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) and filed with the Secretary of State.

The regulations are a part of the California Department of Fish and Game’s (DFG) 2002 sport fishing regulations that the Fish and Game Commission adopted at its Dec. 7, 2001 meeting in Long Beach.

The new state regulations for offshore and nearshore rockfish and lingcod stocks were prompted by action taken in November by the Pacific Fishery Management Council. The Council voted to decrease the bag and possession limits of certain rockfish species found in federal waters to help rebuild overfished stocks of bocaccio, canary, cowcod, yelloweye rockfishes, and lingcod. Because many of these species are found in both state and federal waters, the Commission adopted similar state laws to comply with the federal regulations for these species.

The regulations are available on the Fish and Game Commission’s Web site at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/fg_comm/oceanfish02web.pdf.

Also prompted by the new regulations are the designated management areas for rockfish and lingcod.

St. George’s Lodge Diver Dedicated Resort in Belize
A diver’s paradise, Belize now boasts its first dedicated dive resort located on beautiful St. George’s Caye, just an eight-mile boat trip from Belize City.

The dedicated dive facility, St. George’s Lodge, located a mere mile from the largest barrier reef in the Western Hemisphere, has convenient access to many of the premier dive locations in Belize. Visitors can experience Belize’s finest diving, combined with a personal touch from owner/operator Fred Good. The professional PADI certified staff will help divers explore miles of the pristine Barrier Reef, the atolls, the world-famous Blue Hole and much more. St. George’s Lodge offers a host of dive classes that cater to all levels of experience, from the first-time diver to the seasoned expert.

Resort facilities include six thatched roof water-front cottages providing guests with a tranquil and romantic island setting. The cottages amenities, everything from the floors to the shower rack, are hand-crafted from pure Belizean milled mahogany.

For more information on St. George’s Lodge, visit the resort’s web site at http://www.gooddiving.com or call the toll free number, 1-800-678-6871.