Diving Into Disruption

How the coronavirus pandemic is changing the dive industry

- Shreya Acharya

The novel coronavirus is affecting everyone worldwide, including dive shops, resorts, liveaboard operators, and individuals – whether divers or not. In this feature, we plunge into the impact of COVID-19 on the ocean, the dive industry, and the responses institutions are coming up with to cope in these unprecedented times.

THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

With dramatic falls in pollution levels around the globe, the coronavirus pandemic has had a number of positive effects on the environment as millions across the world are placed under lockdown.

CLEAR CANALS OF VENICE

The tourists who normally swarm the Venice canals are gone and the boat traffic vastly reduced. As a consequence, the normally polluted waters of the canals are clearer than at any time many locals can remember.

While the COVID-19 lockdown has forced people indoors, animals seem undeterred – as if Nature now has the chance to take control. The subdued humdrum surrounding tourism and the reduced number of motorboats in Venice has led to cleaner waterways. And it is not the only city affected.

A HEALTHIER GANGES

With industries shuttered and people staying home, the quality of the water in the Ganges river has witnessed a significant improvement of around 40 to 50 percent since March 24, 2020 – the day that Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown in light of the coronavirus pandemic. An estimated 10 percent of the pollution in the Ganges comes from industries.