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County officials question scuba permits at Deep Lakes, ask conservation board to review liability
Summary
Muscatine County supervisors and conservation staff discussed two approved scuba special events and expressed concern about liability, insurance waivers and staffing; supervisors asked conservation staff to recommend rescinding out‑of‑county scuba permits or limit scuba to trained search‑and‑rescue activities.
Muscatine County supervisors and conservation staff debated whether to allow scuba activities at county parks after conservation staff reported two special‑event scuba permits had been approved.
Katie Hammond of the conservation department told the board May 19 that two groups — DIVENTURES of North Liberty and Scuba Adventures of the Quad Cities — had been approved under special‑event permits. She said the events included shoreline cleanup and dive activities at Lake Jewell and Lake Violet. Hammond said groups sign a special‑event permit, provide a certificate of insurance and collect participant waivers with the event coordinator, but the county is not currently named on individual participant waivers.
Board members raised safety and liability concerns. A board member said the county had received certificates of insurance showing $2,000,000 of liability coverage from the event coordinators, but asked whether that coverage extended to individuals and whether the county was named on waivers or insurance policies. Conservation staff said they do not receive signed individual waivers naming the county and that the county typically receives the event coordinator’s insurance certificate.
Supervisors and staff discussed operational issues including weekend staff availability to review waivers on site and whether the county should require an emergency‑services agreement or other supervision as a permit condition. Several supervisors said they were uncomfortable accepting the risk for non‑county diver groups; one suggested the county allow scuba only for search‑and‑rescue teams or county‑affiliated divers who train with local emergency services.
A supervisor summarized the board’s direction: to seriously consider recommending that the conservation board rescind the already issued out‑of‑county scuba permits and limit scuba activity to county search‑and‑rescue/diver training or to events that meet stricter insurance, waiver and emergency‑services requirements. Conservation staff said they would raise that recommendation at the conservation board meeting scheduled that night.
No formal county vote to rescind permits occurred at the supervisors’ meeting; staff will present the board’s recommendation to the conservation board for action.
