Thai dive sites may be closed due to coral bleaching

Phuket Dive Industry Needs Controls, says Enviro Minister: Surin, Similans May Be Closed
Chutima Sidasathian PhuketWan 17 Jan 11;

NATURAL Resources and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkitti has called for greater control of the diving industry and warned that destruction from coral bleaching may force the closure of large areas of the Andaman region's most precious and popular marine parks and dive sites.

The Director of Research, National Parks, Thailand, Dr Songtam Suksawang, said frequent dives on Andaman reefs had illustrated that 93.6 percent of coral at Surin, the Similans, Phi Phi, Racha and Phuket is dead.

Damage was much worse than the destruction caused by the 2004 tsunami, he said. The coral could take between five and 10 years to recover, he said, and yet there were no signs of young coral.

Khun Suwit questioned the future of a Phuket that became overdeveloped and said there was a need to make "the beauty of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi stable forever."

Khun Suwit and Dr Songtam were speaking today to media at the launch of the Andaman Marine Protected Areas Network at Had Sai Keaw, a far-north beach on Phuket's west coast. They watched park rangers practice sea rescues.

Khun Suwit said there was a need for talks to begin on the future of the three provinces. "Everyone has to talk together," he said. "The governors, hotels, restaurants, everyone has to begin talking."

He acknowledged that the original tourists who visited Phuket for its natural beauty has moved on and yet for the future of its tourism, Phuket needed long-term visitors who kept returning.

"Whoever takes the money under the table, please stop," he said. "Don't destroy the fish and the forests."

Breaches of laws governing the environment would be punished, he said, no matter how senior or powerful the people involved.

Garbage and bad water at Surin Island and the Similans was creating a pollution problem, he said, caused by the popularity among divers and snorkellers. Marine life was also suffering, he said.

The dugong population, once believed to be recovering, was now declining as their rare sea grass feeding zones were polluted by coastal construction.

Turtle numbers had risen last year but were now showing signs of declining once again. Coral fish were also being sighted in fewer numbers.

"The quality of the boats and the quality of the people who bring the tourists is doubtful in some cases," he said. "The income is not the primary need. If the industry is not controlled, there will be too many boats, and too many people.

"We have to save the reefs and the marine environment."

He added that Phuket also needed to look more closely at the effects of development. "If Phuket is covered in buildings, why would people want to come to a holiday place that is just like the place they left behind?"

Phuketwan has called for Phuket's beaches to be removed from the control of corrupt local councils and placed under the protection of a new authority, and for a single government administration to oversee the future of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi so that Phang Nga and Krabi remain natural havens as Phuket becomes a big city.

The death figures site by site on coral bleaching are: Surin Island, 99.9 percent; Thachai Island 84 percent; Surin South 85 percent; Similan Island 89.3 percent. Research divers will check the sites again on Thursday.

Diving paradises may be closed
The Nation 17 Jan 11;

The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources is seeking the closure of two diving paradises, the Similan and Surin national parks after the coral there was found suffering from bleaching.

The scope of the corals destroyed from the bleaching has been wide and unless proper measures are issued, more coral would be destroyed by the phenomenon, said department director general Kasemssan Jinnawaso on Monday.

"The damage found on the coral for now is vast, probably the worst in history and certainly more than when The tsunami hit this area in 2004. The species affected are the Staghorn, Ring, Double Star and Mountain coral," Kasemsan said.

His department has already submitted a request to the National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation Department to close parts of Similan and Surin National Parks to prevent any further damage to the coral.

A cause of the coral bleaching is the rising temperature of the sea water, which has reached 30 Celsius since the middle of last year, he said, adding that waste and pollution from diving boats are also contributing to the phenomenon.

"Many divers are also contributing to the damage as they step on the coral," he said.

Surveys of the sites between September and December 2010 showed that 93.6 per cent of the coral at Surin Nua Island had died from the bleaching while almost 100 per cent of the reef near Mae Yai Bay had died.

Referring to Phi Phi, Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Leh islands, Kasemsan said the coral there was also damaged by bleaching in vast areas, probably about 90 per cent of the reef.

Tourist numbers at reefs hit by bleaching may be limited
The Nation 18 Jan 11;

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkitti yesterday vowed to crack down on diving operations and even close some marine attractions in a bid to protect coral reefs from bleaching.

"We are considering limiting the number of tourists and requiring boats to moor quite far from the affected coral reefs," he said.

Officials would also try to find out how to restore them, he said.

Concerns have been growing that swathes of coral reefs have been damaged by bleaching.
Some worst hit areas may have to be closed to tourists so that they could recover naturally. Bleaching, a natural phenomenon, has struck coral reefs around many islands including Similan and Surin.

"I have already instructed authorities to conduct studies and introduce tangible steps to rehabilitate the coral reefs," he said. The new measures would also likely be introduced in areas with seaweed.

Divers have said that overcrowding at diving sites is hurting the coral reefs. Some spots get up to 300 visitors a day.

Director-general of the Marine and Coastal Resources Depart-ment Kasemsan Jinnawaso said the coral bleaching in the Anda-man Sea and Gulf of Thailand was very serious. The fatality rate for bleached coral was very high.

Director-general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Sunan Arunnopparat said he would inspect the Similan, Surin and Phi Phi islands on Thursday.

"If the damage is huge, I'm going to make these national marine parks off-limits to tourists," he said. Suwit will also summon the chief wardens of all 26 national marine parks in the country to a meeting on Thursday, he added.

Dept presses ahead with dive site closure
Bangkok Post 19 Jan 11;

The Marine and Coastal Resources Department is pressing ahead with a plan to close 10 popular diving sites in five provinces to limit the impact of tourism on severely damaged coral.

Department chief Kasemsun Chinnavaso said yesterday he had forwarded the proposal to the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, which supervises the affected marine national parks.

The diving sites facing temporary closure to allow coral to recover from bleaching are located in Hat Nopparattara-Mu Koh Phi Phi National Park in Krabi; Mu Koh Surin Marine National Park (Phangnga); Mu Koh Rang National Park (Trat); Koh Tao (Surat Thani); and Koh Pai and Koh Kang Kao (Chon Buri).

The department proposed earlier this week that the sites, which attract about one million tourists a year, be declared off-limits. The proposal has been met with strong resistance from diving operators and the tourism industry.

Mr Kasemsun, however, is standing firm on the plan, which received the backing of Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkiti.

The department has alerted all related agencies, including local administrative bodies, about the coral bleaching and recommended rehabilitation measures, Mr Kasemsun said.

"If related agencies refuse to comply with our recommendations, then they should take responsibility for the severe damage to the marine environment and future economic losses," he said.

Niphon Phongsuwan, the department's senior marine biologist, said the coral bleaching, which began early last year, was the worst in 20 years.

Scientists believe the main cause of the bleaching is the warming of the oceans, which forces zooxanthallae, an algae which coexists with the coral and gives it colour, to extract itself from the coral.

Many coral reefs in the Andaman Sea have turned a pale yellow or white colour and gradually died.

Less than 1% of coral affected by coral bleaching at Koh Phi Phi, Mu Koh Surin and Mu Koh Similan had recovered.

The staghorn is the worst-hit coral species because it is sensitive to warm water. However, staghorn coral need a shorter time to recover than pachyseris, which requires at least 20 years.

Pachyseris live about 30 metres below the sea surface.

Thailand has 96,000 rai of coral reef, half of which is in the Andaman Sea with more than 90% of the coral reef suffering bleaching.