Update: 1/07/2015 The build continues and soon I’ll be posting pictures of the progress. Also included will be (hopefully) a 3D rendition of the major stages of constructions as well as 3D of the finished unit. We have acquired a digital video (sport cam) to support the topside video documentation of activities as well as a lightweight tripod for the camera. Meanwhile, planning continues on several missions to operate in fresh water environments. Two of the freshwater features that I am investigating, as possible mission sites, are located within the boundaries of our state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR); therefore I am researching the required permissions, restrictions, etc… for operating in these waters. During my exchanges with the PA DCNR District authority I have learned about some important concerns when operating in regional freshwater ponds & lakes. Coincidentally, as a diver, I have the same concerns when diving in these environments. Two major concerns are transfer/transport of pathogens and exotic/invasive organisms (contamination), and perturbation of resident organisms during critical life cycle events (i.e. breading season, etc…). One way to deal with the contamination issue is to perform a thorough decontamination/disinfection on the equipment pre & post dive. The DCNR representative has provided me with procedural outlines at the following links: https://mail.google/mail/u/0/#label/Diving%2FOpen+ROV/14acb3024c979455?projector=1 And https://mail.google/mail/u/0/#label/Diving%2FOpen+ROV/14acb3024c979455?projector=1 As it is recommended that the OpenROV be thoroughly washed with fresh water after every use, I see no problem with including little more effort as routine for standard operating procedures. The only issue I can foresee with the recommended disinfecting procedures would be the effect that harsh disinfectant chemicals might have on the acrylic (in terms of discoloration) possibly making the body tube cloudy. This is an issue that I will investigate via experimentation. If anyone has any experience with this issue, your feedback would be greatly appreciated. As our intention is to investigate exploration of natural aquatic areas in a proper manner, it is important that we do this in a way that has minimal impact on the local biota that inhabits the operational site. This being said, I believe the best way to address the issue of avoiding or minimizing perturbation of local inhabitants is to plan operations for periods of time outside of “critical” lifecycle event timelines (wherever possible). A big “Thank You” to Roy Brubaker | District Forester, PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry, Forest District 1, for all of your assistance. As always folks your feedback, suggestions, participation, etc… are always most welcome and greatly appreciated. Thanks Ron Peters sends
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 02:24:44 +0000
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