Protect Coral Reefs in Malaysia

Oil spills are a huge problem on Tioman and happen more frequently than one think. This year alone, Tioman had five different occasions where oil was found in the water or washed up on the shores. From 2016 to 2019, Reef Check Malaysia together with local stakeholders have had to rapidly respond to reports of oil spills and remove over 5 tonnes of oil spills from beaches.

Tioman are considered lucky because different stakeholders such as local Tioman Development Authority, Department of Fisheries Malaysia, Alam Flora, Tioman Marine Conservation Group, local business operators and villagers, sometimes tourists too, came together to remove the spills.

However, being a small location and located remotely, Tioman lacks the equipment to deal with large oil spills and endures delay as materials need to be transported there.

Most oil spills on Tioman are results of illegal dumping by vessels passing by Tioman waters or sometimes vessel collisions happened at offshore, brought in by currents.

We hope these vessels will be more responsible and spare Tioman from oil spills disasters – claiming marine life, covering unaware snorkelers and divers with the spills, and reducing aesthetic of Tioman beaches to name a few.

Reef Check Malaysia (RCM) established Cintai Mantanani programme on Mantanani Island in 2011 when the island was identified as fish bombing hotspot in Sabah. In 2016, RCM is looking at establishing community led protected area on Mantanani. Community consultations conducted with the locals showed that they are highly interested to manage their own marine resource.

In 2018, Sabah state government announced that Mantanani Island will be gazetted as Marine Protected Area (MPA). The traditional management of MPA is top-down approach, local communities are often left out in decision making and management processes. As a result, due to resentment, lack of compliance and supports from the local communities, marine resource management are often hampered and met major setbacks.

With the announcement, Mantanani islanders are very concern about their future. RCM believes that management of marine resources is a shared responsibility. We are now working closely with Sabah Parks to enable co-management approach being adopted in the management of Mantanani MPA. Sabah Parks welcome the idea because it aligns with their vision and mission which is “people living in harmony with nature”.

We hope co-management of Manatanani MPA will be realised. We will work towards that, please wish us well.