Renovations, Expansion on
Truk Aggressor II
The 107-foot live-aboard Truk Aggressor II is undergoing extensive renovations including the addition of a new four-person cabin, bringing the yacht’s passenger capacity to 18. The half-million dollar dry docking includes standard vessel maintenance such as painting, recarpeting and engine and generator overhauls. New improvements include an installation of a more efficient nitrox system and satellite phone system with e-mail capabilities, upgrading the air-conditioning system with two 17-ton units and complete remodeling of the upper deck. A huge four-person quad cabin is being created on the upper deck. This spacious stateroom features four single berths, two large storage lockers, drawers, writing desk, 40-inch window and private head and shower. Additional upper deck improvements include new hand-crafted lounge furniture and bar with beverage coolers, gas grill and new hot tub. Seven-day dive charters will resume in Truk November 26, 2000.
“The Truk Aggressor II is already one of the finest live-aboards in Micronesia, but these improvements will truly make her one of the most luxurious dive yachts in the world,” says Dan Ruth Aggressor Fleet Pacific operations manager.
Due to the political unrest in the Solomon Islands, the Truk Aggressor II has suspended all 2000 and 2001 Solomon charters and the vessel will operate year-round in Truk Lagoon.
Aggressor Fleet has live-aboard dive yachts in Bay Islands, Belize Cayman, Costa Rica, Fiji, Galapagos Islands, Kona, Hawaii, Palau, the Red Sea, Solomon Islands, Truk Lagoon and Turks Caicos. For reservations, call your local dive shop, travel professional or Aggressor Fleet Limited at 1-800-348-2628, e-mail: info@aggressor.com or visit www.aggressor.com on the internet..
President Clinton for has signed into law the Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000, or “BEACH bill.” The bill requires coastal states to monitor beach water quality and warn the public when beach waters contain dangerously high levels of disease-causing microorganisms.
“By signing the BEACH bill, it has helped ensure that future trips to the beach will be healthy ones for millions of Americans,” said Ted Danson, Founding President of American Oceans Campaign (AOC). “This is a major victory for beach-goers and coastal communities across the nation.” Last year, Danson testified before a Senate committee about the need for consistent beach water quality testing and public notification practices across the nation.
The BEACH bill amends the Clean Water Act to require ocean, bay and Great Lakes states to adopt minimum, health-based criteria for water quality, comprehensively test recreational beach waters for pathogens and notify the public when contamination levels make beach water unsafe for swimming, surfing and similar activities. The bill also authorizes $30 million annually in federal grants to help coastal states develop and implement effective water quality monitoring and public notification programs.
“American Oceans Campaign has worked for over a decade to see that beach-goers and coastal citizens get the information they need to stay healthy and help stop beach water pollution,” said AOC Executive Director Barbara Jeanne Polo. “We applaud the signing of this common-sense legislation and thank the BEACH bill’s sponsors, Senator Lautenberg and Representative Bilbray, for their vision and leadership. We extend our gratitude to all who have joined with AOC in supporting the BEACH bill.
“The BEACH bill will give coastal communities and the beach-going public a fighting chance against beach water pollution,” added Polo. “After all, a day at the beach should not end with a trip to the doctor.”
For more information on American Oceans Campaign, visit their website at www.americanoceans.com.
DiversDiscount.com Announces New Name and Corporate Headquarters
Divers Discount Supply has changed its name to DiversDiscount.com. DiversDiscount.com is owned and operated by scuba instructors and divers. The company features retail outlets throughout Southern California and in Las Vegas, no hassle exchange and return policies, 150 percent price protection, full manufacturers’ warranties, and will meet or beat any dealer’s price.
In addition to the name change, DiversDiscount.com has a new corporate headquarters. The new office features a dive center where customers can purchase gear, browse the company’s library of scuba related reading material, find answers to questions about gear and travel from DiversDiscount.com’s scuba instructors, sign up for scuba classes offered by DiversDiscount.com, or even inhale the purity of O2 at an Oxygen Bar. The new HQ is located at 30308 Esperanza, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA; phone 800-34-SCUBA. And on the web you will find them at, where else, www.diversdiscount.com.
The Glacier facility will house indoor snowboard and skateboard parks, a free ice skating rink, the largest rock-climbing wall in North America and six separate Wave Lock Flowrider® surfing and bodyboarding waves. The facility will also feature restaurants and additional retail stores along with a fitness center, children’s snow play area, interactive arcades and more.
The Gotcha Glacier is the anchor tenant of the Sportstown development located adjacent to Edison International Field in Anaheim, California. The project is contained in Anaheim’s larger Sportstown District—an 805-acre region that includes The Glacier, Edison International Field and the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim. Between the three sporting venues, the District offers spectators and sports enthusiasts the opportunity to watch or participate in 28 different sports. When completed, the Sportstown District in Anaheim will be the largest concentration of permanent sporting activities in the United States. The Sportstown District is located two miles east of Disneyland.
Sport Chalet is a leading operator of full service specialty sporting goods superstores in Southern California. The Company offers thousands of sporting and recreational products and over 35 services for serious sports enthusiasts, including ski and snowboard rental and repair, full dive training and certification programs, scuba charters, team sales, racquet stringing and bicycle tune up and repair through 23 locations. For more information on Sport Chalet, visit www.sportchalet.com on the web.
Killer Algae Found in 2nd Location; Diver Help Needed
Your assistance is needed to prevent a grave environmental and economic disaster from occurring along our Pacific coastline. A highly invasive strain of the non-native green seaweed Caulerpa taxifolia has been discovered in a coastal lagoon in San Diego County. (August 2000 California Diving News). This finding is the first time the invasive strain of Caulerpa taxifolia, also dubbed “killer algae” in the Mediterranean, has been reported in the Western Hemisphere. However, another infestation has also been identified more recently in an isolated portion of Huntington Harbor. These infestations likely resulted from the release of aquarium water into a storm drain.
The invasive strain of Caulerpa taxifolia was first discovered in the Mediterranean Sea in 1984. This strain of seaweed most likely originated from an aquarium. Immediate eradication was not attempted, and as a consequence, within a few years government officials determined the infestation to be uncontrollable. Today, marine scientists there are largely resigned to monitoring its continuous expansion.
When introduced in a non-native marine habitat, Caulerpa grows as a dense smothering blanket, covering and killing all native aquatic vegetation. The weed is not a health threat to humans. However, fish, invertebrates, marine mammals, and sea birds that are dependent on native vegetation are displaced or die off from the areas where they once thrived.
A team of federal, state, and local agencies, an environmental consulting firm, and other interested parties was immediately formed in response to the recent California infestation. This team promptly developed and is currently implementing a rapid eradication effort. The team is hopeful that Caulerpa taxifolia will be eradicated from Southern California.
As a scuba diver, your help is needed to identify and report the location of infestations of Caulerpa taxifolia.
If you find the seaweed growing, note the location, but do not disturb it. Any detached fragment has the ability to start a new infestation. Please immediately report any sightings of Caulerpa, made while diving or snorkeling, to the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board’s Caulerpa Action Team at (858) 467-2952.
We also want to know who has been looking for the seaweed while scuba diving or snorkeling, and can report an area “free” of Caulerpa. Please direct these reports to us by e-mail at caulerpa@rb9.swrcb.ca.gov. Please include the location, date, contact information, and any additional comments that may be helpful.
Early detection is a critical ingredient of California’s effort to prevent the permanent establishment of this destructive seaweed along our coast. For complete information visit the website www.swrcb.ca.gov/rwqcb9/News/Caulerpa_taxifolia/caulerpa_taxifolia.html. \
Supplied by John H. Robertus, Executive Officer for the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board
Return to Cover Page/Contents for November 2000 issue