Good Way To Lose Tourists And Money

[SamuiExpress]

These pictures were taken on Monday, June 4th at the Sail Rock dive point north of Samui and were brought to my attention the following day.

The reason they were given to me was to run an article in the Samui Express in hopes of creating some awareness of the problem and therefore, hopefully, a solution.

The article, that will be out next weekend, will provide a lot more details, etc.

My one question and purpose for this post is:

Thai law states that no fishing is to be done within 3 km of land. Does Sail Rock qualify as land? I.e. are the Thai fishermen breaking the 3 km law?

RG

[Rooo]

These pictures were taken on Monday, June 4th at the Sail Rock dive point north of Samui and were brought to my attention the following day.

The reason they were given to me was to run an article in the Samui Express in hopes of creating some awareness of the problem and therefore, hopefully, a solution.

The article, that will be out next weekend, will provide a lot more details, etc.

My one question and purpose for this post is:

Thai law states that no fishing is to be done within 3 km of land. Does Sail Rock qualify as land? I.e. are the Thai fishermen breaking the 3 km law?

RG

Rob,

They anchor out of KPG opposite Bophut. Last month I counted 62 boats visible.I know that for a certain time of the year they are only allowed to fish within 2 kms off land ( I presume being Samui ).Reason given is to replenish stock.So you might have to consult the Marine Police re the actual rules , regs & the official stance.

[LaoPo]

A shame, really.

SBK can tell you all about it....

LaoPo

[The Vulcan]

Shocking thing to see - let's hope your article gets some action

[mac.wheeler]

Shocking thing to see - let's hope your article gets some action

Disgusting, it will take years for the damage to be repaired. Any more info? I would like to post a news item about this on my website.

[The Vulcan]

I'm not a diver so I might be talking out of my backside, but it occurs to me that the diving schools/divers could assist here by clearing away some of the nets. Reasonable thought?

[sbk]

It is illegal and as Rooo stated, they fish, with those long, fine nets, off the reef of Koh Phangan on a regular basis. Well within the 2km mark. More like 600m off the shore, a few meters away from the reef. These large fishing trawlers have fished illegally like this for as long as I have lived here and have devastated the fishing for locals. Occasionally, locals will shoot at the fishing boats to scare them off and naturally, that is when the marine police get involved, not when the boats are breaking the law. Rumor has it they are owned by someone influential enough to scare the marine police, so no action is ever taken.

Good luck to you if you run the story. Let me know if you want any photos of them fishing illegally off Koh Phangan. I have plenty.

[Jet Gorgon]

The divers have been cleaning away nets and stuff for years. And who is this Rob reporter?

[limbos]

I'm not a diver so I might be talking out of my backside, but it occurs to me that the diving schools/divers could assist here by clearing away some of the nets. Reasonable thought?

Vulcan,

As already stated, divers from various schools/shops on Samui have been clearing nets for years already.

[Mid]

if it's any condolence it's not done on purpose .................

those nets are not cheap .

More than likely a navigational error due to inexperience ,

lay the blame on overpopulation and depleting natural resources .

[sbk]

Losing the nets isn't done on purpose, obviously, but fishing illegally off the reef most certainly is. So, if they weren't fishing illegally there wouldn't be the risk of damage. Since I have seen these boats fishing meters off the reef for the past 18 years I seriously doubt it is a navigational mistake. If they are willing to fish illegally here what is to stop them from fishing illegally in a marine national park?

These fishing boats are fishing for the small sardines mainly used for fish sauce but because they use such a fine net catch everything. Hence the problem of it catching on the reef.

So, no, its no consolation at all. It would be perfectly avoidable if the Marine Police actually did their job.

[wolfmanjack]

It is illegal and as Rooo stated, they fish, with those long, fine nets, off the reef of Koh Phangan on a regular basis. Well within the 2km mark. More like 600m off the shore, a few meters away from the reef. These large fishing trawlers have fished illegally like this for as long as I have lived here and have devastated the fishing for locals. Occasionally, locals will shoot at the fishing boats to scare them off and naturally, that is when the marine police get involved, not when the boats are breaking the law. Rumor has it they are owned by someone influential enough to scare the marine police, so no action is ever taken.

Good luck to you if you run the story. Let me know if you want any photos of them fishing illegally off Koh Phangan. I have plenty.

I could have a scope brought in for the locals trying to scare off the fishing boats if you would like ?

[Mid]

interesting point you raise on illegal fishing ,

whilst I am aware that there are areas , where does one find out exactly where they are , ie start and atop .

one more point , how do we know that the net wasn't lost elsewhere and drifted to it's current location ?

[pumpuiman]

Sad to see.

Sounds like the creation of an artificial reef offshore might be a good idea.

[sbk]

interesting point you raise on illegal fishing ,

whilst I am aware that there are areas , where does one find out exactly where they are , ie start and atop .

one more point , how do we know that the net wasn't lost elsewhere and drifted to it's current location ?

Sail Rock is, as far as I know, protected. Unlikely it drifted in since the fact of the matter is these guys fish illegally everywhere they can. The closer to the reef (or rock) the better as that is where the small fish they are looking for live. So, the chances are, given their track record, it was snagged on the rock by the fishing trawler.

And I am sure the boat captains know where they are and aren't allowed to fish, all the locals know it, so why shouldn't these guys whose living it is to know?

[Mid]

agree ,

the practicalities are another thing though ,

something akin to a touch judge at a football match .

ps , you may want to look at the nets again they appear to be quite large , not likely to apprehend too many sardines there .

[sbk]

Sorry Mid, my mistake, checked with hubby and its anchovies, apparently

Whatever the little tiny fish is that is used in fish sauce

Fish is fish

[PaulAllen]

agree ,

the practicalities are another thing though ,

something akin to a touch judge at a football match .

ps , you may want to look at the nets again they appear to be quite large , not likely to apprehend too many sardines there .

Are you looking at the same pics we are?

Drifted in? Don't know where they are? Navigation error? Not done on purpose? Blame overpopulation and depleted natural resources? Comparing to a touch football game?

Mid, I think maybe you have an excuse or explanation for everything. You must be a genius or something. I have a lot of questions maybe you can answer for me about life. Did aliens build the pyramids? Maybe the net is just a smudge on the camera lens or a new undiscovered type of sea creature?

Your posts are a waste of pixel space on my computer. Please try to ADD to the discussion and not degrade it down to everyone trying to explain your asinine posts.

If it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck and walks like a duck, guess what? It's a duck.