Guest guest Posted May 30, 2002 Report Share Posted May 30, 2002 ***************************Advertisement*************************** TechCentral http://star-techcentral.com ***************************************************************** This message was forwarded to you by yitzeling. Comment from sender: This article is from thestar.com.my URL: http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2002/5/28/features/hrsea1 & sec=fe\ atures ________________________ Tuesday, May 28, 2002 Marine life besieged By HILARY CHIEW WE have heard it all – declining fish-stock, polluted seas, devastated coral reefs, the expanding list of endangered marine species, all of which signal the deteriorating state of our marine environment. And if we think that is a problem remotely linked to us, we need to take stock. Harmful algae blooms, paralytic shellfish poisoning and the perils of consuming contaminated seafood are set to take a toll on public health. In more serious cases, fatality may result. Take the case of harmful algae blooms, for instance. Generally referred to as the red tide as characterised by the scarlet tinge of its phytoplankton, occurrences of the toxic bloom were confined to the west coast of Sabah until 1990. “In 1991, the first case of shellfish poisoning occurred in the peninsula when three people were taken ill after eating farmed mussels from the Straits of Malacca. In early 2000, the east coast of Sabah reported its first case of shellfish poisoning,” said Gires Usup who teaches at the Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Gires was speaking at the recently concluded Asia Pacific marine science and technology conference in Kuala Lumpur which was attended by scientists, policy-makers and administrators. “The latest incident of seafood poisoning was reported in Tumpat, Kelantan, last September when a man died after eating contaminated lokan (a type of clam). There is concern that we may find more cases of shellfish poisoning due to the low flushing ability of the shallow and narrow straits,” warned Gires. As the shellfish aquaculture industry assumes increasing significance, paralytic shellfish poisoning may become more common. Harmful algae blooms, a generic term for micro-algae proliferation in marine and brackish waters, have become widespread in recent years. Blooms can be toxic or non-toxic. Toxic blooms contaminate fish and shellfish which feed on them, while non-toxic blooms deplete vital oxygen supply in the sea, killing off fish and shellfish. Excessive pollution from land-based activities have a direct bearing on algae blooms. Agricultural run-offs and sewage rich in nitrogen and phosphorus feed algae blooms, leading to increasing public health and economic costs. In the Philippines alone, toxic blooms had impoverished the economy by 10 million pesos (RM767,000) for each of the 2,000 cases reported since 1983. There were 115 deaths from shellfish poisoning. In Hong Kong, a single bloom in 1998 killed off 3,500 tonnes of cultured fish. Losses were estimated at US$40mil (RM152mil). To counter the threat of harmful algae blooms, the Malaysian Government introduced its shellfish toxicity monitoring programme in the early 1990s to stop contaminated seafood from reaching the market place. Besides, if we want to export seafood, we have to meet international standards and subject our marine catch to quality health checks. While food poisoning from eating contaminated seafood can be easily detected, there are other hidden hazards that may not be immediately apparent. Toxins in blooms can cripple the reproductive ability of fish and shellfish. Worse still, the lingering toxins are passed down the food chain, eventually ending up on our dinner plate. Besides land-based activities, oily waste water discharged from shipping operations, oil spills, pollution from coastal oil refineries, and leaching of anti-fouling paint used for coating ship hulls, add to the chemical cocktail. Aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene, toluene, xylene, naphthalene and phenanthrene which are present in large amounts in crude oil are highly soluble and toxic to fish and shellfish. The toxins disrupt the endocrine and hormonal systems of the living organisms. Present in high concentrations, they can cause mortality. Marine pollution is compounded by the fact that the fluid nature of the marine ecosystem does not recognise national boundaries. There is increasing awareness among countries of the need to co-manage transboundary problems such as harmful algae blooms, oil spills, and even migratory resources like fish and bigger marine mammals. Call for concerted effort So, what are we doing about our polluted seas? “We all know the environment is polluted but the problem is, we are still grappling with management methods,” said Dr Chua Tia Eng, programme director of the Regional Programme on Partnerships in Environ-mental Management of the Seas of East Asia (Pemsea). Pemsea, a collaborative effort between the United Nations Development Programme, International Maritime Organisation and the Global Environmental Facility, defines East Asia seas as those bordered by China, North and South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. The Manila-based outfit divides the area into five large marine ecosystems which are of great ecological and economic importance: the East China Sea, the Yellow Sea, the South China Sea, the Sulu-Celebes Sea and the Indonesian Sea. “Our marine ecosystems are not functioning as well as they should be. We need a paradigm shift in management policies and thinking. It is not enough to identify the problem,” said Chua. “We have to act fast to overcome the shortcomings from unilateral efforts adopted by government agencies. In most countries, the national and state agencies lack coordination, resulting in poorly executed programmes. Countries need an integrated policy to coordinate and prioritise the implementation of strategies. Scientists must share their findings and policy-makers should update their knowledge to formulate sound policies. East Asia sea nations will have to forge a shared vision and common mission to formulate programmes to achieve their goals,” urged Chua. Under Pemsea’s blueprint Strategic Framework for Sustainable Development of the Coasts and Oceans, the vision represents a common understanding among the people regarding their shared marine heritage. It may take 30 to 50 years to realise the vision, but what is more important is collective political will and cooperation among the concerned governments and stakeholders to implement the programmes. Acknowledging that marine environmental conservation has long been neglected over land-based development, Science, Technology and the Environment Minister Datuk Law Hieng Ding said a policy drafting committee would be formed soon, headed by the National Oceanographic Directorate. As a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Laws of the Sea (Unclos), Malaysia is committed to observing good ocean-use practices, said Law. He added that the Government would be spending RM30mil over the next five years for marine research and development. Pockets of activities While governments struggle to get their act together, ideas and efforts to rehabilitate degraded marine ecosystems, protect pristine areas and rescue endangered species are surfacing. Scientists are looking into ways to rehabilitate coral reefs following the El Nino effect of 1997-98 which bleached reefs in the region, and the use of dynamite fishing by irresponsible parties. The dynamites not only killed fish but blew off stretches of coral reefs. “A variety of reef restoration activities ranging from coral transplantation to artificial reefs has been initiated. They should be expanded as part of the strategy to conserve the region’s reef resources,” said Dr Chou Loke Ming of the Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore. Chou cited the example of a resort in Indonesia which had successfully rehabilitated its reef flats. Some participants were sceptical though. For so long as the causes for reef death are not checked, we may be spending taxpayers’ money for a lost cause. The decline in turtle population in recent years has also caught the attention of scientists and government agencies alike. Conservation programmes were initiated as early as the 1970s, as in the case of the Leatherback turtles which nest in Rantau Abang. However, efforts are undermined by differing state laws (turtles are considered state resources), trawling activities, and the lack of political will to ban the consumption of eggs of the four endangered species – the Green turtle, Olive Ridley, Hawksbill and Leatherback. Wasted wetlands Marshes, mangrove swamps and tidal flats which form the intricate coastal ecosystem are often left out in marine management programmes. “Coastal wetlands are highly productive ecosystems,” said Murugadas T. Loganathan of Wetlands International – Malaysia Programme. “Wetlands serve as erosion and flood control agents, provide valuable timber, double up as nurseries for a myriad of marine life, and act as stopover points for migratory birds.” With the impending implementation of the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty to curb the emission of greenhouse gases which are blamed for global warming, South-East Asian countries may find it far more rewarding to retain their mangrove forests than to fell them for a quick buck. They stand to benefit from the protocol’s carbon-trading mechanism which enables developing countries to “sell” their green lungs to absorb greenhouse gases produced by industrialised nations. “Mangroves are more productive than previously thought. A large fraction of carbon is stored in standing wood, below-ground roots and buried in sediments. Hence many mangrove forests are carbon sinks and they can be used to gain carbon credits,” said Dr Daniel Alongi, a research scientist at the Australia Institute of Marine Science. Even when the trees are logged and the timber used for piling in the construction industry, the locked-away carbon remains trapped in the wood. “The greatest threat to the future of mangrove forests in South-East Asia is felling for unsustainable aquaculture and urbanisation,” said Alongi. “It is thus imperative to use both practical and scientific information to manage mangrove resources in the region on a sustainable basis.” Indeed aquaculture, which was touted as the solution to dwindling wild stocks, has fallen short of expectations. Malaysia still imports fish from neighbouring countries. Plagued by diseases, fish farmers could lose millions overnight to virus attacks. The aquaculture industry undermines wild stock reproduction to some extent as it depends on collection from the wild to replenish its supply of fries. New findings also suggest that the conversion of mangrove swamps to aquaculture ponds releases carbon trapped in the sediments. As much as 705 tonnes of carbon are released into the atmosphere for every hectare of mangrove swamps dug up to a depth of two metres deep, said Prof Dr Ong Jin Eong, a researcher at the Centre for Marine and Coastal Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia. Even if only half the soil is dug, it will take 250 years for the mangrove forests to absorb the carbon released into the atmosphere from the conversion of each hectare of mangrove to aquaculture pond, added Ong. Sustainable management of the marine environment clearly calls for a concerted effort from all parties. Transboundary cooperation is the way forward. Clearly, there is no time to waste. ________________________ Your one-stop information portal: The Star Online http://thestar.com.my http://biz.thestar.com.my http://classifieds.thestar.com.my http://cards.thestar.com.my http://search.thestar.com.my http://star-motoring.com http://star-space.com http://star-jobs.com http://star-ecentral.com http://star-techcentral.com 1995-2002 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Star Publications is prohibited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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