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Divers Set World Record For Cleaning Trash From Ocean Floor

June 17, 2019

More than 600 scuba divers set a new world record by scooping up trash from the ocean floor on Saturday.

Photo credit: Mike Stocker / Sun-Sentinel.com

633 divers picked up litter from the sea floor near the Deerfield Beach International Fishing Pier in Florida.

The record was overseen by Guinness officiator Michael Empric, who flew from New York to do the official head count.

Divers had to stay in the water for at least 15 minutes to count towards the record.

It is still not known exactly how much trash was collected, the Sun Sentinel reports. But diver and environmentalist RJ Harper reported that divers collected 1,600 pounds of lead fishing weights alone.

"Obviously, trash was collected, but the beauty of it is with 633 divers, we were able to do a very thorough cleaning," Harper told the news outlet.

The previous record for the most divers taking part in an underwater cleanup was 614, in a dive organized in the Red Sea in Egypt in 2015.

"It doesn't matter what happens today with the Guinness World Records," said Empric. "What really matters is that everyone is out there cleaning up around the pier and trying to improve the community."