New Hand Signal for Divers: The P for Plastic

March 20, 2019 Did you know that there is a new hand signal in the diving world? A group of Dutch divers, diving companies and the Plastic Soup Foundation invented a new hand signal for divers: the P for Plastic. Every year, thousands of marine animals get caught in plastic or mistake plastic for food and die out of starvation. The plastic soup is also causing coral reefs to get sick because plastic works as a magnet attracting toxins. It’s a disaster for underwater life and a threat to what we love doing – diving!

The Plastic Hand Signal: P for Plastic

Divers use underwater hand signals for squid, turtles and sharks, but not yet for the largest polluter in our ocean – plastic. If nothing changes, by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean. As a diver, you are constantly confronted with the ongoing decay and damaged state of the sea and the coral reefs. This is why a group of diving companies and divers, together with the Plastic Soup Foundation, are introducing a new hand signal: The P for Plastic. This signal can be used by divers under water to let their buddies know that they see plastic and they want to pick it up. The goal of this hand signal is to encourage as many divers around the world to spread awareness and take action against the plastic plague that our ocean is facing right now. You can help spread the word by sharing the picture on social media using the hashtag #PforPlastic, print and hang the poster in your dive center or use and teach the hand signal to other divers. Find more information about what you as a diver, dive pro or dive center can do to stop plastic pollution at the Plastic Soup Foundation and at our  Mission Deep Blue Program.