Saving the Oceans, One Dive at a Time.

Mangrove Cleanup

Mangroves are generally overlooked as cleanup locations but suffer from a massive debris influx due to the denser boating traffic volume than the open ocean.

Sadly trash can harm a wide variety of sea life that becomes entangled in debris

Sadly, trash can harm a wide variety of sea life that becomes entangled in debris

OCF and Rainbow Reef have partnered with the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation and locals within the community to conduct cleanup dives of the local mangroves and canals.

The mangroves are the nurseries of the sea and provide a special habitat for most of the fish that you see out in the reef. Among the mangrove roots you will find all of the juvenile forms of our colorful reef fish, hanging out and hiding from predators, until they are big enough to migrate out onto the reefs. It is possible to find yourself face-to-face with a manatee, or to see juvenile nurse sharks and endangered sawfish!

0n the first Mangrove Cleanup dive of 2022, OCF, in partnership with Rainbow Reef was able to collect more than 260 pounds of marine debris in just two dives! In conjunction with the largest dive shop in the Keys, we will continue to work to retrieve debris from these areas, and increase awareness of the imminent threats to these ocean nurseries that protect our coastline.

Through these efforts, OCF and Rainbow Reef were able to restore permission to utilize Goal: Clean Seas grant funding to conduct mangrove clean up dives, not only for ourselves but for other operators within the sanctuary.

After the impact of Hurricane Irma, a large quantity of trash has made its way into the waters surrounding the beautiful Florida Keys. These professional cleanups educate divers on current debris issues, as well as prepare them to successfully and safely remove debris while diving.

The dense mangrove passageways yield a sad array of debris: all manner of bottles and cans consisting of plastic, glass and metal as well as boat parts, tires, fishing poles, rafts, oil drums, rope, anchors, watches, phones, maps, derelict lobster traps and even a coffee maker. We are always curious what we will find next.

Diving the mangroves is much different than ocean dives given their constrained nature and the currents and tides. However, they are very rewarding due to the sensitive nature of their ecology and the damaging debris we remove.

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