Coral bleaching in Malaysia: Nine snorkelling sites still out of bounds

The New Straits Times 25 Oct 10;

ALOR STAR: Nine popular snorkelling sites at marine parks in Kedah, Pahang and Terengganu, which were closed in July because of coral bleaching, remain off limits to divers and coral enthusiasts.

The Marine Parks Department's newly-appointed director-general, Dr Sukarno Wagiman, said the ban on recreational activity remained in effect although work on preservation of corals at the dive sites had shown results.

The ban, which was to be lifted by the end of this month, will continue for an indefinite period.

"There has been tremendous improvement on the condition of the corals after the department imposed a temporary closure on the dive sites.

"(But) we will continue to monitor and conduct preservation work on the sites until the condition of the reefs return to normal," he said after launching a half-day seminar on coral preservations here yesterday.

Sukarno believes the corals will turn colourful when the sea temperature improves, following monsoon changes, which is expected to take place early next month

The affected dive sites in the three states were closed after the areas recorded coral bleaching of between 51 and 100 per cent.

Sukarno said the department would also beef up security by increasing the number of patrols at the marine parks.

"We want to preserve the corals and reduce the number of encroachment activities at the parks," he said.

There are six marine parks in the country, which are made up of 42 islands in Kedah, Perak, Terengganu, Pahang, Johor and Sabah.


Underwater patrols to nab those who damage corals
The Star 25 Oct 10;

ALOR STAR: Underwater patrols will be conducted at 42 marine parks nationwide from January to nab those who damage or collect corals.

Marine Parks Department director Dr Sukarno Wagiman said 100 enforcement personnel would conduct patrols to nab culprits.

He said stricter enforcement was aimed at preventing damage to the corals.

Those caught could be fined under the Fisheries Act, he said, but did not specify the amount.

Dr Sukarno also said the temporary closure of several dive sites at three marine parks since June due to coral bleaching has been extended.

He said this was because the corals at these sites have not fully recovered. “When we first proposed the time frame, we thought that it would give ample time for the corals to recover.

“It seems the corals need a much longer period of time,” Dr Sukarno said yesterday at a seminar on coral protection, organised by Tourism Malaysia here.

He said the department had yet to decide when to reopen the dive sites to the public.

It was reported in June that several dive sites at the Tioman marine park in Pahang, Redang marine park in Terengganu and Payar marine park in Kedah were made off-limits to divers and snorkellers until the end of this month.

The sites were affected by coral bleaching, a phenomenon caused by global warming that has increased sea water temperature by 2°C to between 28°C and 29°C.

The affected dive sites are Pulau Chebeh and Batu Malang in Pahang; Teluk Dalam, Tanjung Tukas Darat, Tanjung Tukas Laut, Teluk Air Tawar, Pulau Tenggol and Teluk Bakau in Terengganu; and Teluk Wangi, Pantai Damai and Coral Garden in Kedah.

Pulau Regis, Pulau Soyak and Pulau Tumok in the Tioman marine park are also temporarily closed.