A volunteer team roams the depths of the sea to clean it of pollutants

Voluntary work is not limited to the plains and beaches, and work does not stop at hardship and difficulties. There are those who dive into the depths of the sea volunteering for the Omani environment and protecting its natural vocabulary under the sea.
The volunteer team "Quriyat Divers" record an example of national action and an effective initiative in protecting the Omani environment. They work under the umbrella of Quriyat Club, and have so far completed 8 initiatives in cleaning the depths of the sea. Their work began since April 2019 with 27 members, all of whom belong to the world of diving, including a trainer Scuba diving guide, rescue diver, advanced diver, and open water diver.
The team aims to clean the sea floor from pollutants such as nets and plastic, as well as awareness-raising to preserve the marine environment, and provide assistance to sailors and fishermen within the limits of the team’s capabilities. The team also aims to participate in preserving a clean marine environment and rooting the importance of preserving the marine environment, and representing the Sultanate between The volunteer team in this field of preserving the marine environment abroad.
The team follows a search and tracking mechanism for news of missing nets, by reporting the nets through fishermen, searching by team members while diving, following up the news through social networks, as well as the mail in the team’s e-mail. Once this news is received, a number moves. One of the team members to inspect the site and submit a simplified report to manage the team, then address the concerned authorities and enumerate the divers to complete the work, then a meeting of the team is held to present the problem, determine the roles, inventory the tools and approve the implementation date, then the diving tools are prepared based on the number of divers to carry out the work.
This volunteer work is not without risks. The team faces challenges and risks, the first of which is drowning as a result of nets and ropes getting stuck in diving tools, as well as exposure to decompression disease, and the work is not free from exposure to fish attacks such as the fake marine eel shark, as well as poisonous fish and other marine life such as sea lions and urchins. Sea, starfish and rockfish, as well as waves and ocean currents.
The team was able to record more than 3 tons of 760 kg of weight extracted from the nets and anchors through the eight initiatives it has undertaken since last year.
The first initiative began in October 2019 in the Ras Abu Dawood area and was able to extract 800 kilograms of fishing nets, moorings and ropes, and then another initiative, which was a shipwreck at a distance of 2 kilometers from the shore, and 600 kilograms of waste was extracted, and the team’s initiatives continued, the last of which was on November 21 During which nets were removed from 16 to 30 meters below sea level and weighed 210 kg, with the release of some marine life.