Diving Paradises May Be Closed

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The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources is seeking the closure of two diving paradises, the Similan and Surin national parks after the coral there was found suffering from bleaching.

The scope of the corals destroyed from the bleaching has been wide and unless proper measures are issued, more coral would be destroyed by the phenomenon, said department director general Kasemssan Jinnawaso on Monday.

"The damage found on the coral for now is vast, probably the worst in history and certainly more than when The tsunami hit this area in 2004. The species affected are the Staghorn, Ring, Double Star and Mountain coral," Kasemsan said.

His department has already submitted a request to the National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation Department to close parts of Similan and Surin National Parks to prevent any further damage to the coral.

A cause of the coral bleaching is the rising temperature of the sea water, which has reached 30 Celsius since the middle of last year, he said, adding that waste and pollution from diving boats are also contributing to the phenomenon.

"Many divers are also contributing to the damage as they step on the coral," he said.

Surveys of the sites between September and December 2010 showed that 93.6 per cent of the coral at Surin Nua Island had died from the bleaching while almost 100 per cent of the reef near Mae Yai Bay had died.

Referring to Phi Phi, Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Leh islands, Kasemsan said the coral there was also damaged by bleaching in vast areas, probably about 90 per cent of the reef.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/01/17/national/Diving-paradises-may-be-closed-30146548.html

[ScubaBuddha]

I'll be the first to say what everyone is thinking...scuba divers and scuba diving activities have a negligible negative impact on marine environments, and certainly cannot be blamed for coral bleaching. In fact the awareness and activism scuba diving promotes far outweighs any negative. All scuba divers get at least some education on environmental awareness and are more conscientious about the environment than the average person, certainly far more than the average snorkeler or fisherman.

These people really need to speak to an expert. This is not something unique to Thailand. The entire worlds reef ecosystems are dying, and it ain't because of scuba diving. Studies have shown that coral bleaching is a result of pollution caused by land based activities which stress the reef systems, then when waters warm during El Nino seasons occur, whether they are part of a normal cycle or helped along by global warming/climate change, the coral can't handle it and dies sooner and in greater numbers than they would have otherwise.

Having said that, certain things can be improved. Anchors and weighted descent/ascent lines need to be placed away from coral. Thai boat crews should understand that feeding the reef fish for the entertainment of snorkelers upsets the food chain of the underwater ecosystem. There is no sewage pumping station for boats in Thailand so all raw sewage from boats goes directly into the sea. Boats should at least dump their sewage away from coral reefs instead of the current practice of dumping whenever someone flushing the head. One local dive operation that had a live-a-board boat stationed through the low season at Racha Yai dumped their tanks every night and when the wind and current was right by morning the east side bays would have a foul smelling brown sheen covering them.

But as I said, it's the land based activities that are the real culprit. Contaminated agricultural runoff from fertilizer, pesticides, animal waste, soil erosion etc. I have a habit of paying attention to where a businesses gray water goes. That can be detergents from dishes and even urine and human feces. In developing countries like Thailand it very often goes directly into the klongs which feed empty into the beaches. This is why the bacteria level on Patong beach is so high.

I always tell my students it's a good time to learn to dive because sadly our ocean reef ecosystems will likely be something we can only tell our grandchildren about.

Edited January 17, 2011 by ScubaBuddha

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