40 SAFETY ONARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES UNDERWATER AND ON THE FORESHORE
operation of archaeological teams, particularly where
there is the possibility of a team of professionals and ama-
teurs working together, when specific regulations might
apply. Codes of practice for archaeological sites under water
would normally be written with reference to numerous
sources (e.g. commercial, scientific and sport-diving
manuals). Some suggested sources for further information
are provided at the end of this chapter.
Some codes will be more suitable than others and in
unusual circumstances more than one code may be in use
on the same site. This can happen when separate diving
teams are involved in one project and responsible for dif-
ferent aspects of the work on site. It is far less complicated
and preferable to have one specified code of practice but
whatever code is in use, it is important that everyone
involved is familiar with its application. As with the risk
assessment, a code of practice must be regularly reviewed
for appropriateness during the course of a project.
Both the risk assessment and the diving code of prac-
tice developed and adopted for a specific project are
effectively statements of competence. In the (hopefully
unlikely) event of an accident, these documents will be
referred to by the authorities. The project manager will
have to prove to the authorities that all reasonable care
was taken and health and safety requirements were met.
CONTROL OF DIVING OPERATIONS
The appointment of a controller of diving operations, who
has no direct responsibility for archaeological work, is
a sensible arrangement on larger projects. This person,
often referred to as the diving supervisor, diving officer
or dive marshal, has to organize, regulate and record the
diving operations in a way that creates as safe a working
environment on site as possible. It is a job, however,
that requires tact as well as experience; it takes consider-
able skill to ensure safe diving without seeming overbear-
ing or patronising. A suitably qualified and experienced
diving supervisor may control each individual diving
operation.
The diving supervisor should be accessible to divers with
queries or complaints about diving practice on site and
it is often useful to have full and open discussions about
any incidents that occur, no matter how minor. Incidents
should be recorded in the project operations log and in
some countries there is a requirement to report incid-
ents to health and safety executives or an alternative safety
organization. Some people need prompting to vocalize
anxieties, especially if they feel overawed or intimidated
by other, more confident, but not necessarily competent,
individuals. Do not wait for a serious incident before
having an honest appraisal of how safe people feel with
working arrangements.
WORKING UNDER WATER
It has been mentioned above but it is worth re-
emphasizing that archaeology is the objective of the diver
rather than the diving – i.e. the diver is there to work
and diving is simply a means to get to work. Therefore,
any diving system should enable the diver to safely
carry out archaeological work to an acceptable standard.
A diving system that requires the diver’s constant atten-
tion just to stay safe is not acceptable. In choosing an
appropriate system, the list of factors to consider will
include the following:- Site environmental conditions – including accessi-
bility, visibility, depth, tidal strength and tempera-
ture (e.g. a relatively deep-water site in an isolated
location would require additional safety equipment). - Type of work to be undertaken – excavation should
normally be considered more strenuous work than
survey and it is advisable to use a diver-to-diver or
diver-to-surface communication system. - Size of vessel – this will have an impact on the
way the divers enter and leave the water as well as
influencing the method of recovering equipment
or finds. In addition, the ability to recover an inca-
pacitated diver is essential. - Divers’ experience and qualifications – some sites are
best investigated using a commercial diving system
but specific diving qualifications or experience will
usually be required.
Putting together the right diving system and diving
team should lead to higher archaeological standards. To
achieve this, the project organizer needs to have a thor-
ough understanding of both archaeological and diving
issues (plate 6.1).POTENTIAL DIVING PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
During the planning stage of a project there are numer-
ous factors that need to be considered.Physical problems: A wide range of factors can affect
the physical well-being of a diver working on an archae-
ological project. Examples include: nitrogen narcosis,
decompression, quality of breathing-gas, air and water
temperature, exhaustion, equipment malfunction, poor
communications, injury, bad weather, water movement and
visibility.
Cold (hypothermia) is a common problem in archae-
ological work because the diver is often required to be
stationary for long periods. Even in the tropics, long dives