Regional bid to save Sabah waters
Joe FernandezPublished: May 14, 2009 9:05 AM | Updated: May 14, 2009 11:36 AM
A regional grouping on marine conservation is trying to arrest the decline in sea produce in the Marudu Bay-Semporna area in eastern Sabah, as it could pose a potential threat to loss of livelihood to local communities.
A regional grouping on marine conservation is trying to arrest the decline in sea produce in the Marudu Bay-Semporna area in eastern Sabah, as it could pose a potential threat to loss of livelihood to local communities.
About 20 of the 161 grouper species, known as ‘ikan kerapu', are being threatened to extinction.
These includes the squaretail grouper and humpback grouper, which are popularly served in restaurants. The red snapper, threadfin, and pomfret are declining in quantity and catch size.
"Through sustainable development programmes and activities, not only the marine resources would be conserved but they would also increase the income of the people living in coastal areas," said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, Maximus Jonity Ongkili, in a statement released in Kota Kinabalu.
Fish getting smaller
Known as the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security (CTI), the six-nation grouping is currently meeting in Manado on ways to pool their expertise and resources to save their common sea heritage.
Coral Triangle is a geographical term referring to the waters in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea. Half of the world's coral reefs are in the Triangle.
Collapse of the reefs in the CT area would send food production in the region plummetting by 80 percent and imperil the livelihoods of over 100 million people, warned WWF-Malaysia. This is expected to force communities from coastal villages to the teeming cities that are already bursting at their seams.
Malaysia's participation in CTI would draw in regional assistance in saving 35,000 square miles of Sabah waters - spanning from Kota Marudu to Semporna and beyond to the Sulu and Sulawesi seas. A RM2 million study of Marudu Bay is underway and is due to be submitted to CTI next month, Ongkili said.
Meanwhile, the Borneo Marine Research Institute (BMRI) at the Universiti Malaysia Sabah has estimated that sharks and sting rays in Sabah is down in population and also in size due to scarce food supply.
Malaysia has 36 species of sharks and 42 species of sting rays with most of them in Sabah, according to BMRI shark specialist Dr Mabel Manjaji Matsumoto. Longline fishing has been identified as the worst exterminator of sharks.
Sabah, a the hub for live fish trade, is expected to feel the pinch following CT initiatives such as a 27 percent reduction by the Philippines in their fisheries export to Sabah.
At present, live fish trade pumps in US$100 million annually to the fishing communities in southern Palawan, Philippines.
"Malaysia, in particular, will play a vital role in the sustainability of the live reef fish trade in the region," said Ken Kassem, Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion Manager for WWF-Malaysia.
"We suspect that much of the live reef fish that are traded in Kudat probably come from the southern Palawan Island in the Philippines."
Rice bowls at stake
Meanwhile, in Tawau, local fishermen are pondering whether they have a future in the trade as their catches decline in quantity, quality and size.
Tawau Fishermen's association chairman Hasan Timbasal said the waters of Teluk Cowrie no longer teem with quality fish such as pomfrets."
"One day, there would be no more fish in Teluk Cowrie, including rivers in the area such as Kalabakan, Serundung, Merotai and Imam," said Hasan.
"The authorities should rein in the trawlers operating indiscriminately in the area. Submerged nets used by some of the coastal fishermen have also contributed to the destruction of marine resources."
He welcomes the initiatives of the Coral Triangle nations "since the livelihood of 15,000 local fishermen in Sabah are at stake".
The full extent of Malaysia's commitment in the CT will be known tomorrow when Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak addresses the 1st CTI Leaders' Summit.
Malaysia and the five other CTI nations are also expected to sign a declaration, aimed at promoting public awareness on the importance of marine resources and fisheries in food security.
About 20 of the 161 grouper species, known as ‘ikan kerapu', are being threatened to extinction.These includes the squaretail grouper and humpback grouper, which are popularly served in restaurants. The red snapper, threadfin, and pomfret are declining in quantity and catch size.
"Through sustainable development programmes and activities, not only the marine resources would be conserved but they would also increase the income of the people living in coastal areas," said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, Maximus Jonity Ongkili, in a statement released in Kota Kinabalu.
Fish getting smaller
Known as the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security (CTI), the six-nation grouping is currently meeting in Manado on ways to pool their expertise and resources to save their common sea heritage.
Coral Triangle is a geographical term referring to the waters in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea. Half of the world's coral reefs are in the Triangle.
Collapse of the reefs in the CT area would send food production in the region plummetting by 80 percent and imperil the livelihoods of over 100 million people, warned WWF-Malaysia. This is expected to force communities from coastal villages to the teeming cities that are already bursting at their seams.
Malaysia's participation in CTI would draw in regional assistance in saving 35,000 square miles of Sabah waters - spanning from Kota Marudu to Semporna and beyond to the Sulu and Sulawesi seas. A RM2 million study of Marudu Bay is underway and is due to be submitted to CTI next month, Ongkili said.
Meanwhile, the Borneo Marine Research Institute (BMRI) at the Universiti Malaysia Sabah has estimated that sharks and sting rays in Sabah is down in population and also in size due to scarce food supply.
Malaysia has 36 species of sharks and 42 species of sting rays with most of them in Sabah, according to BMRI shark specialist Dr Mabel Manjaji Matsumoto. Longline fishing has been identified as the worst exterminator of sharks.
Sabah, a the hub for live fish trade, is expected to feel the pinch following CT initiatives such as a 27 percent reduction by the Philippines in their fisheries export to Sabah.At present, live fish trade pumps in US$100 million annually to the fishing communities in southern Palawan, Philippines.
"Malaysia, in particular, will play a vital role in the sustainability of the live reef fish trade in the region," said Ken Kassem, Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion Manager for WWF-Malaysia.
"We suspect that much of the live reef fish that are traded in Kudat probably come from the southern Palawan Island in the Philippines."
Rice bowls at stake
Meanwhile, in Tawau, local fishermen are pondering whether they have a future in the trade as their catches decline in quantity, quality and size.
Tawau Fishermen's association chairman Hasan Timbasal said the waters of Teluk Cowrie no longer teem with quality fish such as pomfrets."
"One day, there would be no more fish in Teluk Cowrie, including rivers in the area such as Kalabakan, Serundung, Merotai and Imam," said Hasan.
"The authorities should rein in the trawlers operating indiscriminately in the area. Submerged nets used by some of the coastal fishermen have also contributed to the destruction of marine resources."
He welcomes the initiatives of the Coral Triangle nations "since the livelihood of 15,000 local fishermen in Sabah are at stake". The full extent of Malaysia's commitment in the CT will be known tomorrow when Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak addresses the 1st CTI Leaders' Summit.
Malaysia and the five other CTI nations are also expected to sign a declaration, aimed at promoting public awareness on the importance of marine resources and fisheries in food security.
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