EVERY DIVE IS A DIVE AGAINST DEBRIS
There's a messy problem lurking beneath the waves and it's only scuba divers that have the skills to solve it.
As scuba divers, we've got a very special set of skills that allow us to explore beneath the waves. Unfortunately, it also opens our eyes to the many threats faced by the ocean. The one that hits us the most is marine debris. We've seen first-hand the impact this has on ecosystems and marine life and we want to do something about it.
Every dive we do is a dive against debris.
Our divers are citizen scientists who conduct PADI AWARE surveys during every dive. They remove rubbish from the ocean and log their findings. This data is submitted to PADI AWARE and used in their ongoing research into the impacts of marine debris. You can see our survey records in our dive (b)logs.
Want to get involved? Come diving with us! You can join our troop of regular divers in the Submerge Subscription or check out our calendar for pay-as-you-go options.
PROTECT WHAT YOU LOVE
Marine conservation happens above and below the waves
You don't have to be a scuba diver to get involved with marine conservation. You can get join one of our regular beach cleans to do your bit to protect the ocean.
You'll find our 2 Minute Clean Up Station at every dive site we visit. You can call by, grab a litter picker and bag and head out along the beach to collect rubbish.
We also organise community litter picks at Blyth Beach, Cambois, Newbiggin and along the River Blyth in the colder months when there's not as much diving going on.
REDUCE, REUSE, REFUSE, RECYCLE
This mantra runs through the core of our business. Even our dive centre is made from reclaimed materials!
We've built a pretty special place at The Fifth Point Diving Centre - and we don't just mean our community of eco-divers... we actually designed and built the centre with sustainability in mind.
We used as much reclaimed materials as we could get our hands on. Our training tank is from Gumtree, the floor is from an old barge at Blyth Harbour, the retail display is made from hundreds of broken pallets we acquired from a packing company round the corner - the list goes on and on.
We try our very best to be as sustainable as possible as a business. We recycle everything we can, we choose environmentally conscious scuba gear to use in the school, and we offset our carbon emissions with SeaGrass Grow.
But there's still much more we can do. We'd love to get solar panels installed, drive an EV dive van, we've even got a pipedream of planting our own seagrass meadow (if you can help us with that, please get in touch!) we're constantly trying to improve.
100% AWARE PARTNER
For every student we certify, we make a donation to the PADI AWARE Foundation on their behalf.
PADI AWARE works with scuba divers across the globe to protect underwater environments. The goal? To create a world where the ocean doesn't need protecting and we're 100% on board!
The charity empowers divers to tackle key ocean threats like habitat destruction, climate change, overfishing and land-based pollution.
Together with PADI, they're seeking to mobilise one billion ocean torchbearers. Find out more about becoming a PADI Torchbearer and take the pledge!
PADI ECO CENTRE
The first in the UK, and one of the first 11 in the world!
We were stoked to be awarded the PADI Eco Centre rating - it took a lot of hard work including...
- Joining PADI AWARE's Adopt The Blue Program - we adopted 5 of our local dive sites and pledged to look after them by removing any marine debris we find on the beach and underwater
- We became Green Fins members by conducting a rigorous self-evaluation of our environmental impact and creating an action plan to improve. All the team took Green Fins Eco Guide training and we officially implemented the Green Fins Code Of Conduct that we'd been using for years.
- We worked tirelessly on our action plan to reduce our impact score and hit our improvement targets, which we smashed!
But that's not the end of the story. Green Fins will help us continually up our game as we re-do our self-evaluation annually and set new targets. We still have lots more we can do!
GREEN FINS MEMBERS
We follow the Green Fins Code of Conduct
The Green Fins initiative aims to protect and conserve coral reefs through environmentally friendly guidelines that promote a sustainable diving and snorkelling industry. You'll recognise their philosophy in dive briefings you've listened to - don't take, don't touch, leave only bubbles, take only memories. Very common mantras when diving in beautiful tropical destinations.
However, for some inexplicable reason that code of conduct goes out the window in the UK! It appears to be acceptable to remove marine life, to strip wrecks, to clamber all over our rocky reefs.
At The Fifth Point, we recognise that this is NOT OK, our students and divers feel the same. Our waters may be cold, but our reefs are not indestructible. The coral and critters that live in UK waters are just as delicate as any marine life you might find in the tropics. That's why The Fifth Point pledge to follow the Green Fins Code of Conduct. All rules apply... except wearing gloves - we'll let you off on that one!
OCEAN PROTECTION BUILT IN
Our core courses include environmental extras to create the next generation of Ocean Ambassadors
Our divers spend a lot of time perfecting their skills - particularly those that are going to help them protect underwater environments. We include extra sessions in our on-site training tank to practice buoyancy on all our courses plus Subscription Members can jump in whenever they like!
Our core courses have an environmental twist with PADI Open Water including the PADI AWARE Specialty course and PADI Advanced Open Water including the Dive Against Debris Specialty.
We also deliver a whole host of eco PADI Specialty Courses and eco-themed holidays.
ECO-COMMERCE
Our sister company The Honest Diver brings The Fifth Point's environmental approach and applies it to online retail.
The Fifth Point is a dive centre in Northumberland, and most of our divers come from the surrounding areas.
We created The Honest Diver so we could serve eco-divers all over the UK!
We specialise in environmentally-conscious scuba gear and work only with the best manufacturers. You can place orders online or at Honest HQ (inside The Fifth Point), you can even give the gear a test run in the training tank before you buy.
Our divers love our special brand of customer service - you'll have to try it out and see what you think, but we promise it's completely different from any other scuba equipment website you've tried before!
