Nitrox Diving met to coordinate the current understanding
and status of nitrox diving. It was sponsored
by NOAA, which already had a decade of experience in
the safe use of oxygen-enriched air in scuba diving.
The workshop addressed the validity of nitrox, mixing
methods, appropriate use, etc. They concluded that the
concepts were sound and essentially endorsed enriched
air nitrox when used appropriately. The proceedings,
authored by Dr. R. W. (Bill) Hamilton and others,
appeared in 1989.
Still, nitrox use remained controversial within the
recreational diving community. The recreational training
agencies’ official position was that enriched air diving
was inappropriate to their sphere and clientele.
In 1991, the Diving Equipment Manufacturers
Association (DEMA) almost banned nitrox training
providers from the DEMA show in Las Vegas. Their proposed
action prompted the first of what was to become a
series of pre-DEMA workshops on the use of nitrox in
recreational diving. The workshop was attended by
stakeholders from across the recreational diving industry.
The nitrox training providers were allowed into the
show. Nevertheless, in December 1991, DEMA distributed
a warning concerning the use of enriched air in standard
scuba gear.
In 1992, the controversy over the promotion of
enriched air diving among recreational divers prompted
aquaCorps publisher Michael Menduno, who felt that
part of the controversy was related to lack of information,
to call for a second pre-DEMA workshop to address
the use of oxygen-enriched air in recreational diving.
The Workshop on Evaluating Enriched Air (“Nitrox”)
Technology met immediately before the DEMA show in
Houston. It was jointly sponsored by the Scuba Diving
Resource Group, and Dr. Bill Hamilton served as general
chairman. The several sections of the workshop
addressed the technologies (uses and abuses) as currently
practiced and surveyed the enriched air experience,
the physiology of oxygen exposure, mixing and handling
nitrox, training and certification, and liability and
the manufacturers.
Although the workshop did not specifically attempt
to draw the established recreational diving training
organizations into accepting or adopting enriched air, it
can nevertheless be seen as a turning point in the more
general acceptance of enriched air nitrox diving. (Two
more pre-DEMA nitrox workshops were held–1993 in
Orlando and 1994 in New Orleans.)
In 1992, NAUI officially endorsed nitrox training by
NAUI instructors.
As late as 1993, Skin Diver Magazine took an
editorial position against the use of nitrox by recreational
divers as certain to lead to dangerous misuse
and accidents. Then, in 1994, Rodale’s Scuba Diving
ran an article on becoming nitrox certified, the first
mainstream recreational diving periodical to support
nitrox training. In 1995, PADI, British Sub-Aqua Club,
and other recreational training agencies announced
that they would soon offer enriched air nitrox instruction
programs. Also in 1995, Skin Diver Magazine
declared the use of nitrox acceptable.
In 1996, NAUI codified standards for Enriched Air
Nitrox training and certification in its revised NAUI
Standards and Policies Manual. Shortly thereafter,
NAUI published the first nitrox training textbook from a
mainstream recreational dive training agency.
Today, enriched air nitrox has become a viable and
valued part of recreational diving, and “nitrox fills” are
available to qualified divers at diving destinations
around the world. In this text and in your EANx training
course you will learn the facts about enriched air nitrox
and how to use it safely.
WHY DIVE WITH ENRICHED AIR NITROX?
From the preceding, you should have gained an
appreciation of nitrox and some of the benefits of its use
in diving. Without going into great detail, we’ll note a
few of them. You will gain a greater appreciation of both
the benefits and the necessary precautions as you learn
more about diving with oxygen-enriched air.
First and most notably, nitrox allows divers to
extend their bottom time and enjoy longer dives
without having a required-decompression obligation.
NAUI Nitrox Diver
8 Introduction