Sea Shepherd

Dive Partner

PROTECT

conserve defend

Gold Coast Dive Adventures is an offical Sea Shephard Dive Partner. Together, Sea Shepherd and Dive Partners conduct dive clean-ups, host educational events with the goal to promote our shared values around marine conservation. As Dive Partners we commit to provide low impact dive adventures and other eco tours by upholding Sea Shepherds Code of Conduct, Rules and Ethics. Our conservation activities include clean-up dives, fundraiser events, explorer weekends away during Manta Ray and Grey Nurse Shark season as well as support of other conservation groups such as Reef Check Australia and Humpbacks and High-rises.

Sea Shepherd Australia

The Australian campaigns to rally behind, and support include Operation Apex Harmony, Operation Jeedara, and the Marine Debris Campaign.

Operation Apex Harmony 

Around the world, sharks are threatened by many human activities including finning, fishing bycatch, habitat degradation and government-endorsed control and culling programs. Currently, Sea Shepherd is campaigning against the lethal shark bite mitigation measures enforced by Queensland and New South Wales.

On the 1st of July 2020, the Minister for Agriculture and Western New South Wales, Adam Marshall announced $8 million for shark mitigation initiatives in NSW for the next 12 months. This was a clear victory for sharks, which will include these measures; Drone surveillance led by Surf Life Saving NSW at 34 beaches (the largest drone surveillance program in Australia’s history), 35 SMART drumlines between Lennox Head and Evans Head, 21 real-time shark listening stations and community education including the SharkSmart website and app. Sea Shepherd Australia’s Managing Director Jeff Hansen was quoted stating, “Sea Shepherd would like to applaud the NSW Government for showing true leadership in working towards non-lethal shark mitigation that can save lives. To stand with science, the community and previous Government enquiry findings is standing on the right side of history for our oceans.”

Operation Jeedara

In 2016 and 2018, Operation Jeedara saw Sea Shepherd’s flagship, the M/Y Steve Irwin, travel to the Great Australian Bight to record the beauty of the region and raise the profile of the issue to a global audience.

Earlier this year, over 30,000 people wrote to Australia’s offshore oil and gas regulator NOPSEMA to voice their opposition against Norwegian oil-giant Equinor’s plans to risk marine life and land extracting crude oil from the Great Australian Bight. Around the country, 23 councils formally opposed such drilling while #FightfortheBight paddle-outs along Australia’s coastline garnered the support of tens of thousands of Australians.

Following the incredible amount of opposition and the success of Operation Jeedara, Equinor has recently become the fourth fossil fuel company to abandon their plans to conduct risky deep-sea oil drilling in our pristine Great Australian Bight.

Marine Debris Campaign

Join the fight against plastic pollution. In 2016, Sea Shepherd started a nationwide campaign to clean-up Australia’s waterways and beaches. Since then, passionate volunteers have removed over 3 million pieces of trash from polluting our oceans.

Sea Shepherd is committed to promoting and facilitating family friendly coastal and river clean-up activities and inspiring the community, businesses and industry to take action in support of the protection and conservation of local marine environments.

Operation

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Humpback Whale

Research Expeditions

Sea Shepherd History

The conservation pirates of the high seas, Sea Shepherd, a non-profit organisation founded in the San Juan Islands in Washington State, USA have been controversial since their inception in 1977. Founder, Captain Paul Watson, former board member of Greenpeace has masterminded a myriad of ‘direct actions’ over the last 4 decades, actions that have resulted in numerous marine conservation victories, and an awareness that has been brought to the public eye through their famous expose documentary ‘Whale Wars’ and other collaborations with marine conservation leaders including the late Rob Stewart.

Sea Shepherd spent their early years (the 1980’s) undertaking operations to disrupt seal hunting, whaling and other forms of cruelty to marine wildlife. Sea Shepherd’s most famous actions have occurred when they have rammed and sunken illegal whaling vessels such as a Norwegian ship in March 1990. While the actions of the organisation have been criticised by many who believe in a more passive approach instead of active protest, there has been an increase in co-operation with national governments such as Mexico and Italy who have assisted in anti-poaching missions. In an official proceeding, overseen by Mexican Federal Attorney for Environment Protection, Sea Shepherd agreed to support the protection and care of marine wildlife in Mexican waters. Since 2015, the organisation has worked tirelessly to protect the 22 last remaining vaquita porpoise, a minuscule species of cetacean that is susceptible to entanglement in nets.

The most iconic Sea Shepherd moments have surely arisen in the tumultuous waters of the Southern Ocean. While organisations such as Greenpeace refused to interact with whaling ships while at sea, Captain Paul Watson took an opposite approach, choosing instead to hound the Japanese whalers and disrupt their hunting seasons by various means including attacking and pounding on ships. While there have been setbacks, notably the loss of the vessel “Ady Gil’ (which was rammed by the Japanese), there is no doubt a spotlight has been cast upon the needless killing of whales and other species worldwide. The activities of Sea Shepherd have resulted in several positive court rulings such as the cutting of Japans annual whaling quota from 915 to 333.

There is no doubt that Sea Shepherd has made a name for themselves across the world for their dedication to the protection of marine wildlife.

Our Dive Adventures

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Offshore Ocean Dives
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Offshore Dive Sites
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Dive Boats

Our local reefs and wrecks, the most famous being the Scottish Prince Shipwreck, Palm Beach Reef and Migaloo Reef are within short boating distance approximately off the Gold Coast Seaway entrance. The reefs are flat rocky reefs with rising bommies and boulders. Visit our dive site page for detailed information.

All our trips are double dive trips unless specifically advertised as single dives or triple dives. Our 2 dive boats are fast and comfortable. We also limit maximum numbers to 8 divers to ensure maximum comfort and enjoyment.

Highlights

  • Small groups of 5-8 divers max.
  • In-water dive guides
  • 2 custom built dive vessels
  • Snacks and hot soup in between dives
  • Gear hire available
  • Hotel transfers available
  • 12+ dive sites incl. The Scottish Prince and Migaloo Reef.

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