Vietnam's coral reefs dying fast, marine scientists warn
Pastor Dale Morgan
Vietnam's coral reefs dying fast, marine scientists warn*
HANOI, Oct 22 (AFP) Oct 22, 2006
Vietnamese marine scientists warn that one of the country's premier
coral reefs has been nearly destroyed by harmful fishing practices using
explosives and poison, reports said Sunday.
Up to 85 percent of corals had died around Co To Island, near the World
Heritage-listed island seascape of Halong Bay, warned the National
Agency of Aquatic Resources Protection and a group of oceanographers.
Besides dynamite and cyanide fishing, corals were also being crushed by
ship anchors and smothered by seaweed that has proliferated due to
overfishing, said Chu Tien Vinh, head of the agency, the online news
site VnExpress reported.
The group of researchers proposed the Quang Ninh provincial fisheries
department ban fishing and prevent ships from anchoring around the Co To
archipelago, the report said.
Vietnam, with a 3,200 kilometre (1,984 mile) coastline, has boasted a
rich and diverse marine ecology with 1,100 square kilometres (440 square
miles) of reefs, but the World Resources Institute has warned that over
95 percent of it is severely threatened.
Destructive human activities include overfishing, coastal developments
for tourism and industry, pollution and sedimentation, and fishing
practices such as drift net fishing that scours the ocean floor.
Vietnamese scientists last week also called for the setting up of a
marine reserve around southern Phu Quoc island, to save the coral and
marine life around the island that is now being rapidly developed for
tourism.
Scientists say the An Thoi archipelago south of Phu Quoc has about 125
hectares (308 acres) of coral reefs and 250 hectares of sea grass and
supports marine life including dolphins, sea turtles and the endangered
dugong.
"People are becoming more aware of the impact of fishing on the sea,"
said Dominic Scriven, a British investment fund manager who also runs
the Wildlife At Risk conservation group and part-owns a Phu Quoc
ecotourism project.
"Having felt that the sea was just a place with loads of fish, they are
now seeing that a protected marine environment can help the people, and
that the people can help the environment."