Protect Coral Reefs in Malaysia

Ghost nets are fishing nets that have been left or lost in the ocean by fishermen. They often get stuck on reefs which can damage corals and trap marine life such as shark, turtle and fish. Very often they cause death or injuries to the trapped marine life by restricting their movement, causing starvation, laceration and infection, and suffocation in those that need to return to the surface to breathe.

This year alone, more than 2 tonnes of ghost nets were removed from Tioman Island. If this is not done, the nets can continue to catch and trap its victims. Given the high-quality synthetics that are used today in making fishing nets, the destruction can continue for a long time. Therefore, it is imperative that these ghost nets are removed from the reefs as soon as possible every time after a report was received. The success of these efforts on Tioman Island was due to the collaboration between Reef Check Malaysia, Department of Fisheries Pahang, Tioman Marine Conservation Group and Tioman Dive Association.

Tioman Island is famous for marine-based activities, especially scuba diving and snorkelling. With increasing number of tourists to the island, this put pressure on the reefs. In an effort to reduce the pressure on Tioman reefs, we are working with Tioman locals to boost existing land-based activities. Tioman island has rich flora and fauna on its land counterpart, so it will be a waste if these are not appreciated.

Seven jungle trekking tracks, one from each village, were upgraded recently. Some of the works undertaken were removing fallen trees, clearing the path, replacing old ropes with new one, building steps using natural resources where necessary and establishing new look-out point where suitable. The difficulty levels, time to complete, unique floras and faunas usually encountered along the path and attractions such as waterfall and look-out points were recorded.

Our next step will be working on marketing strategies. It is hope that these often forgotten and unpopular attractions will gain traction and as a result diversify income and reduce dependence on coral reefs.