How many times have you come across an instructor or some divers who touts ocean conservation only to thrash around in the bottom because he or she did not have good diving skills?

When we talk about ocean conservation, most people only think about activities like clean ups or taking a course. However, we can practice ocean conservation overtime we dive by have good buoyancy control. Good Buoyancy control is an important skill to be mastered by any diver and yet is only mentioned in passing in most beginner courses. It should be the first skill to be taught to any diver because not only is the ability to control buoyancy good for ocean conservation, it also enhances a diver's safety.

How does one know if he or she has good buoyancy control? A simple standard is to do some basic skills like regulator remove and replace, or removing, replacing and clear a flooded mask while hovering. If buoyancy is not affected while performing this skills, one has good buoyancy control nailed down. Another useful skill is non-silting propulsion techniques because you can hover inches above the bottom and not kick up a storm due to the position of the fins. 

A good course to learn about buoyancy control is the PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Control Specialty. It will provide the basic tools to learn about buoyancy control. 

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A good course to learn about buoyancy control is the PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Control Specialty. It will provide the basic tools to learn about buoyancy control.