A Decade Ago: Coral reefs and tidal waves of wastewater

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A Decade Ago: Coral reefs and tidal waves of wastewater
Phuket Gazette


Do you remember these headlines? Well, if not, we're sure you'll notice some trends. Image: Gazette graphics

PHUKET: -- As the Phuket Gazette scuba diving columnist for the last four years, I was dumbfounded when I stumbled over the headline screaming from page one of the 2006 March 4-10 issue: HUGE REEF DISCOVERED.

A unique swath of biodiversity for Thailand that consumed at least four square kilometers of seabed off Tai Muang in Phang Nga was the biggest such reef in the region. The discovery followed a report in January stating that about 50 per cent of reefs inspected along the Andaman coast after the tsunami were destroyed.

“It was great – very big and healthy. It is in good condition and only about one per cent was damaged by the tsunami,” said the head of the Thailand Marine Coastal Conservation Unit at the time. “It is completely different from the [reefs at] the Similans, Surin or Richelieu. It is not sloping and it is home to species never before seen in Thai waters, as well as species [that before were] only seen in the Similans.

Full story: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/A-Decade-Ago-Coral-reefs-tidal-waves/63362?desktopversion


-- Phuket Gazette 2016-03-09