United States Environmental Protection Agency Diver Training

 The United States Environmental Protection Agency, Gulf Ecology Division recently hosted the annual EPA science diver certification course in Gulf Breeze, Florida. The facility is the EPA’s only dive training center and representatives from all divisions of the EPA who actively conduct diving operations were in attendance.

All EPA divers involved in on-the-job diving activities must be current EPA-certified divers. This certification is gained through a combination of formal and on the job training. Strict adherence to established EPA safety procedures provide the foundation for both the program and the operations conducted by the working divers in the field. This policy is supervised onsite by EPA dive masters and at a district level by the Unit Diving Officers.

Diving operations performed by the EPA are in accordance with Presidential executive order number 12196 and meet or exceed the requirements of OSHA 29 CFR, Guidelines for scientific diving - 1910 Subpart T Appendix B. This is the exemption for scientific diving operations.

The members of the EPA diving community represent a wide variety of diverse trades, from underwater biologists and geologists to underwater criminal investigations and of course a large portion involves hazardous materials investigations and management of recovery efforts. EPA dive teams were onsite recently for over two months, the duration of the shuttle recovery efforts in TX, teams also continue to provide vigilant support of homeland defense issues in the waters throughout the nation.

The training director for the program is Captain James M. Patrick who in combination with a cadre of EPA unit diving officers, who also serve as the EPA diving safety board, set the pace and focus of the training.

The Florida State University–Marine Laboratory–Academic Diving Program provided additional support for this years training on a contractual basis. The ADP furnished manuals and training materials, performed maintenance on selected EPA equipment, and conducted the training in advanced and scientific diving in both classroom and open water environments. This was the first year the FSU-ADP conducted the training although the director of the FSU diving program Dr. Dan Marelli has participated in the EPA dive training program since 1991.

Students and staff were treated to presentations of ongoing and past EPA projects including haz-mat recovery operations and the shuttle recovery operations recently conducted in TX. Walter F. Nied an on-scene coordinator and diver for the region 5 superfund emergency response branch gave an in depth discussion on the subject of hazardous materials recovery operations. Kevin Larson the supervisor of the EPA recovery team involved with the shuttle recovery efforts in the Toledo Bend Reservoir gave a fantastic presentation on his teams two months worth of diving operations on the project.

The basic certification offered attendees is the title of EPA scientific diver, allowing the graduates the opportunity to participate in a variety of projects. Some examples of current EPA operations are ship and facility inspections, haz-mat recovery efforts, water resource sampling and management, environmental restoration projects, environmental survey and monitoring projects and many more. The EPA maintains an active reciprocity agreement with NOAA and in fact stated that NOAA was instrumental in the development of the EPA dive training program.

The training is also offered to selected representatives from the local law enforcement community, the academic community, and various state agencies. In total twenty-one candidates were certified as scientific divers and six were qualified as dive masters.

The course truly begins at the candidates home unit where the unit diving officer initiates a selection and evaluation process for interested employees. To enter training candidates must have already completed a basic diving course from a nationally recognized agency, be a member of an approved diving program, have been nominated in writing by the unit diving officer or supervisor, and pass a diving physical that has been reviewed by the EPA diving medical specialist.

Candidates are expected to perform a checkout dive and swim test, these are conducted the first day of training to remain in the course. For certification the divers must have performed at least 25 working dives, pass the physical requirements, pass the NOAA standard SCUBA diving written examination, and have completed the EPA diving accident management course or comparable diver training. Certification immediately lapses if the diver goes two months without a logged dive or thirteen months without conducting a physical examination.

EPA divers may receive advanced training as dive-master, advanced scientific diver; surface supplied diving, contaminated water awareness, and recompression chamber operations.

If the divers meet the entry qualifications they can expect an intensive week of training during which the following subjects are covered. Scientific divers received training in full-face mask diving operations, through water and hard wire communications systems, dry-suit and containment suit diving operations, and surface supplied diving operations. Certification in NITROX diving, oxygen administration, and diving accident management were awarded.

Dive-master candidates were instructed in EPA diving operations and safety standards, management of scientific diving operations, neurological examinations and advanced assessment of diving accident victims, oxygen administration, and throughout the course they were evaluated on their management of diving operations and accident scenarios.

 “The mission of the Florida State University Academic Diving Program is to support excellence in underwater research through the use of diving technology, and to promote the academic experience of Florida State students through diving education. The Academic Diving Program also provides training and safety oversight for all diving conducted under the auspices of the University”

Formed in 1975 the ADP maintains a full time staff of four with additional part time staff throughout the semester. The ADP provides training, equipment, and experience in support of five different programs of instruction as well as any research diving conducted under the auspices of the university.

The staff offers over 80 years of combined experience in military, commercial, forensic, and scientific diving operations as well as program management, operations planning, and psychology.

Much of the universities training is open to students, staff, and those who are unaffiliated with the university. Recreational instruction from basic open water diving through instructor certification is offered.

Specialized training in full-face mask diving, through water and hard-wired communications systems, NITROX, surface supplied, and scientific diving is available as well. Medical training courses offered include first aid, oxygen delivery, accident management, rescue diver, neurological examinations, psychology of diving, and more.

One of the newest additions to the program is the Surface Supplied Diving 40 hour Certificate Course www.adp.fsu.edu/courses/SurfSupl/adp-ssd - The course was developed and implemented in 2002 offering attendees a glimpse into the equipment, techniques, and legislation governing commercial diving operations in the United States.

The course was designed to provide thorough and intensive training while keeping cost and time requirements as low as possible allowing the largest numbers of active divers exposure to the training opportunities. The course also provides a platform for exposure to and potential incorporation of, established commercial diving safety measures and regulatory requirements into the diving techniques of the scientists. Soon after inception the program began receiving numerous inquiries from the public safety diving, engineer and inspection diving, and recreational diving communities about training availability as well.

In consideration of these requests the Academic Diving Program elected to offer the training to any interested divers who apply for and receive approval from the university diving safety officer Dan Marelli Ph.D.

The course was designed to maximize training time while minimizing attendee’s time away from current projects. The course is most often offered incorporating a weekend to minimize lost work time. Training days last a minimum of ten hours, although staff are on hand throughout the duration of the course to hold additional study or training modules at the participants request.

The training location is the FSU Marine Laboratory at Turkey Point www.marinelab.fsu.edu who in addition to facilities support provides vessels for the training and lodging for course staff and participants. The training can also be mobilized to offer on site training in the sponsoring agencies normal area of operations for larger groups.

Jeffrey M. Lane is an instructor with the FSU / ADP, an ADC diving supervisor and life support tech., a YMCA / CMAS SCUBA instructor, former U.S. Army Deep-Sea Diver, and former instructor for the Navy Diving and Salvage Training Center.

For more information on the EPA diving program you can visit www.epa.gov