Pearl Diving in Australia

History

• Prior to European settlement, Australian aborigines harvested pearls from shallow waters along the coastline and engaged in trade. European settlers increased pearl diving beginning in the 1850s near Shark Bay, Western Australia, according to the Australian government. By 1910, Australia’s pearl diving industry had grown to more than 3,500 individuals.

Equipment

• Australian pearl diving was revolutionized following the introduction of diving suits, according to the Australian government. These suits allow pearl divers to go deeper underwater and remain there longer, permitting more time to gather pearls. Early equipment involved heavy bronze helmets and weighted boots.

  Modern pearl divers may wear inflatable dive vests and breathe using the “Aqualung,” which delivers pressurized oxygen.

Commercial And Recreational

• The Australian government regulates the volume of commercial pearl diving-related companies and their harvests. Around 1,000 individuals work for about 12 pearl oyster stock companies in the commercial pearl diving industry, according to the Australian government. The total quota for pearl oysters is 572,000 shells annually.

  Recreational pearl diving in Australia can be an alluring adventure for those interested in finding a genuine pearl within natural seabed oysters. However, such findings are rare and the majority of Australian pearl diving is done commercially using cultivated oysters.

Economic Impact

• Pearling has become a major industry in Australia. Australia’s pearl diving, pearl hatchery and pearl culturing efforts were together considered a $150 million industry in 2003, according to the Australian government.

  Pearl diving helped establish some of Australia’s larger fishing centers, including the town of Broome in Western Australia. It also helped attract large volumes of workers from China and Japan, who have since emigrated from Australia’s fringe islands within the Torres Strait to relocate on the mainland, according to the Australian government. Thriving fishing economies and vibrant multicultural communities helped establish Australia as a tourist destination.

Environmental Impact

• Natural oyster beds were heavily exploited throughout the 19th century, according to the Australian government. However, the introduction of plastics for things like buttons and furniture delivered a heavy blow to the industry, reducing the demand for pearls but allowing beds time to replenish. Today the Australian government strictly regulates the industry with size regulations and quota controls.

Dangers

• Early Australian aborigine pearl divers faced grave dangers. Workers were expected to dive with no oxygen, dive masks or snorkels, according to the Australian government.

  Sudden storms can also be dangerous, wrecking fleets of pearl diving boats. The Australian government reports that four cyclones hit pearl diving fleets between 1908 and 1935, killing 300 men and destroying 100 boats.

  Shark attacks and “the bends,” involving the physical effects of suddenly rising to the water’s surface without appropriate measure, also pose dangers for individuals pearl diving in Australia.