Before any diving is carried out there must be a relevant dive plan and diving project plan available.
| 9.1.1. | The Diving Project Plan |
The diving project plan defines the scope of diving work to be performed for a diving project and contains records of the conclusions, findings and decisions of the planning activities relevant to the project. It is both guidance for the dive team and evidence of due diligence by the employer.
Dive plan contain the proposed profile and tasks of each dive and these are updated when required. The dive plan may refer to more detailed information in the diving project plan when appropriate.
The dive plan will consist of, at minimum, the employer's Standard Operations Manual and any appropriate site-and task specific risk assessments and procedures.
The dive plan must specify the diving equipment and techniques to be used as well as the requirements of the particular operation. It must specify contingency procedures for any reasonably foreseeable emergency.
Diving mode is selected for the operation based on the requirements of the specific task, the logistics of the operation, and the HIRA.
Three modes of diving are possible under this Code:
| 9.1.3.1. | Surface supplied diving |
It is a diving mode in which a diver is supplied with breathing gas using a diver's umbilical from the surface, either from the shore or from a diving support vessel, sometimes indirectly via a diving bell.
Scuba is a non-preferred option for diving under this code, however there may be occasions when the use of scuba may be justified by logistical constraints and a HIRA indicates acceptable risk under the specified circumstances. Open circuit scuba may be used with either a full-face mask or a half face mask and demand valve. A full-face mask allows voice communications equipment to be used and is the preferred option under this code.
| (a) | Whenever scuba diving is performed, life lines, buddy lines, surface markers and emergency gas supplies (bailout sets) must be used as reasonably practicable, and provided they do not increase overall risk. The divers should be tethered to the surface marker with an 8mm diameter synthetic line (or equivalent) and this must be constantly visually monitored from a location that allows immediate assistance to be rendered in case of an emergency. |
| (b) | If the employer, the diver and the diving supervisor consider the use of Scuba diving, the following measures must be put in place to ensure that: |
| i. | Voice communications between the divers and the diving supervisor is used; |
| ii. | A buddy system is employed whereby two divers remain at all times in constant visual or physical contact and both divers end the dive immediately if contact is lost; |
| iii. | The diver can be easily located by his fellow divers; |
| iv. | The diver can be located without any difficulty by the standby diver; |
| v. | The diver can be rescued without any delay or difficulty in case of an emergency; and |
| vi. | A life-line is used for the standby diver. |
| 9.1.3.2.1. | Proscribed activities for Scuba diving |
| i. | Scuba may not be used at construction or industrial diving operations that involve welding, burning/cutting, high-pressure jetting, hoisting, dredging, using power tools, or working in an environment contaminated by hazardous materials or microorganisms. |
| ii. | Scuba may not be used for penetration of overhead environments where the exit cannot be clearly seen by the diver under all reasonably foreseeable circumstances. |
Airline diving is customarily used for shallow water aquaculture and harvesting operations. There may be occasions when the use of airline may be justified by logistical constraints and a HIRA that indicates acceptable risk under the specified circumstances. The procedure must be authorised in the company's Operations Manual.
| (a) | Use of airline equipment may be considered when: |
| i. | The risk of diver entrapment is low; |
| ii. | The risk of snagging the airline is low; |
| iii. | Full surface supply equipment is not appropriate for logistical reasons; |
| iv. | no prescribed work is required; |
| v. | Airline mode is required or recommended by a government department for the specific industry. |
| (b) | A bailout system must be carried by the diver when there is any significant risk of the diver being unable to make an immediate, direct and acceptably safe ascent to the surface and to immediately achieve positive buoyancy in the case of a failure of primary air supply. Any ditching of equipment required for such a free ascent may not involve more than one quick release buckle, operable by either hand in a single movement, and all equipment required to fall clear must do so in any reasonably foreseeable circumstance. A bailout system must be used if obligatory decompression is a plausible contingency. |
| (c) | The standby diver may be equipped with any mode of diving equipment permitted by this Code and acceptable in terms of the HIRA. The standby diver should use a lifeline if on Scuba unless the HIRA shows this to be impracticable or it increases the risk. |
| (d) | A line attendant must be used in all operations where airline diving is used. The line tender must be competent and have the relevant knowledge of line signals to be used during the operation. |
| 9.1.3.3.1. | Proscribed activities for Airline diving |
Airline diving may not be used under the following:
| (a) | At construction or industrial diving operations that involve welding, burning/cutting, high-pressure jetting, hoisting, dredging, using power tools, or working in an environment contaminated by chemicals, hazardous materials or microorganisms. |
| (b) | In circumstances where a differential pressure environment exists (e.g. dams, dry-dock locks, in the presence of valves, etc.). |
| (c) | Diving depths exceeding 15m, or where the no-decompression-stop limits are likely to be exceeded. |
| 9.2. | Emergency and contingency plans |
Before a dive commences, all members of the diving team must be thoroughly informed and trained with regard to the procedures to be followed in case of an emergency.
This is usually done in the form of induction training and the "toolbox talk".
The employer's operations manual should contain a section laying out the actions required of each member of the diving team in the event of an unforeseeable emergency occurring during operations.
The following list, which is not exhaustive, identifies the type of possible emergencies to be considered:
| 9.2.2.1. | Dealing with an injured or unconscious diver: both in the water and on the surface |
| 9.2.2.2. | Provision of recompression therapy in the case of decompression illness |
| 9.2.2.3. | Communication with emergency services, local medical facilities and hospitals |
| 9.2.2.4. | Providing first aid |
| 9.2.2.5. | Faulty or broken equipment |
| 9.2.2.6. | Managing exposed divers to biological, chemical and physical hazards |
| 9.2.2.7. | Emergency evacuation of the worksite |
Specific checklists should be provided whenever appropriate to facilitate management in an emergency.
| 9.2.3. | Recovery of unconscious diver |
All dive sites shall have a means of recovering an unconscious or injured diver from the water safely, effectively and timeously.
| 9.2.4.1. | Emergency medical services |
| (a) | The contact number for the local emergency services (or the national emergency number) should be readily available to the diving team. |
| (b) | The specific procedures for contacting emergency services should be clearly outlined in the operations manual and checklists should be provided to facilitate appropriate management in an emergency. |
| 9.2.5. | Termination of dive |
At the onset of any sign of malfunction of equipment or sign or symptom of distress, the diver shall, immediately notify the dive supervisor, the dive tender, and any diving buddy by an appropriate signal and terminate the dive.
| 9.3.2. | Working periods should not be extended or prolonged to an extent that health and safety is compromised. It should be remembered that accidents are more likely when personnel work long hours because their concentration and efficiency deteriorate and their safety awareness is reduced. |
| 9.3.3. | When breaks are taken in the course of a diving operation, the employer will need to ensure that the health and safety is not compromised in any way and that qualified and experienced personnel are available to relieve during these breaks. |
| 9.3.4. | Any handovers of responsibility should be recorded in writing in the daily operations log. |
| 9.4. | Documentation and Equipment |
If an inspector makes an inspection of a worksite and the required documentation is not available on site, the operation may be stopped until evidence is provided, that the required documentation is in order and the equipment is suitable and in date. It is strongly recommended that the required documentation is kept on site where reasonably practicable.
