New Straits Times 29 Oct 09;
KUCHING: Reef balls are synonymous with marine conservation and artificial fish habitat but Sarawak has found a new use for them -- in turtle protection and conservation.
In studies made in the years since 2,590 reef balls were sunk in the seabed in 1998 to create fish habitats near the Talang-Satang National Park, Santubong, Buntal, Tatau and Awat-Awat in Lawas, conservationists at the Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) found a marked reduction in the number of dead turtles in areas where these totally protected marine wildlife are normally found.
"Around 20 dead turtles were found compared with 70 to 100 before 1998," said Wilfred Landong, SFC chief wildlife warden.
He also said the number of turtles that had returned to nest on the turtle islands rose from 737 in 2004 to 1,104 last year.
The number of turtles tagged also rose from 639 in 2004 to 1,028 last year.
Buoyed by these findings, SFC plans to lay 100,000 reef balls using technology patented from the US at the turtle migration route off its coast (which conservationists had called "the turtle highway"), their feeding grounds and sanctuaries in the next five years to realise its marine environment conservation programme.
The five-year plan was estimated to cost RM12.5 million.
The turtle migration route runs from the beaches of western Kalimantan to southern Philippines. Off Sarawak, the route follows the sea grass bed, which the turtles feed on their migration, from Santubong all the way to Sabah.
"The use of reef balls in the protection and conservation of turtles is totally new," said Datuk Len Talif Salleh, the state Controller of Wildlife, at a ceremony to lay 150 reef balls in the seabed around the so-called "turtles islands" of Talang Talang and Satang recently.
He said Malaysia could probably be the only country in the world to use reef balls in turtle conservation.
SFC found the reef balls capable of ripping trawler nets, one of the greatest threats to turtles.
The thought of destruction to their nets would help keep trawlers away from these turtle-frequented areas.
Talif said SFC was only given RM910,000 under the Ninth Malaysia Plan for the conservation programme and it had been used to seed reef balls in the northern sea off the turtle islands -- Pulau Talang Talang Besar, Pulau Talang Talang Kecil and Pulau Satang.
The waters off these islands are favourite spots for illegal trawlers.
But with plans to sink some 1,000 reef balls near Similajau national park in Bintulu and another 1,000 in Kuala Lawas to ensure feeding grounds of the dugongs and sea turtles are protected, more money was needed.
This year, the state Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment had allocated RM275,000 to SFC for the programme.
The reef balls, designed to last 150 years, cost RM1,000 each and another RM300 to RM500 to transport and deploy.
Talif said Malaysia would again seek the cooperation of Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines in the conservation of turtles.
He said the move would be made through such forums as the Sosek-Malindo and BIMP-EAGA.
