The Corals off Borneo are not Spared Either

Today's news reported that marine experts in the Universiti Malaysia Sabah are also worried that the corals off Sabah are also suffering the same fate as corals of West Malaysia' s coast. 

Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) scientists have discovered widespread coral bleaching in Sepanggar Bay, off Sabah waters.

UMS Director of Borneo Marine Research Institute Prof Dr Saleem Mustafa said coral bleaching needs serious attention as it affects marine biodiversity and coral reef fisheries in the state's waters. Prof Saleem said coral bleaching was a stress response associated with ecosystem disturbances.


According to UMS experts, in the context of Sabah, the corals have been living close to their maximum water temperature tolerance, and additional warming of water certainly has a debilitating effect on their health and survival.
It was explained that coral bleaching happens when corals lose the symbiotic micro algae that lives on their surface (zooxanthellae  or the plant plankton, ) due to unfavorable environmental conditions. Bleaching stress has affected not merely the stony corals but also some soft corals, sea anemone and other marine invertebrates which have symbiotic relationship with the zooxanthellae.

Prof Saleem said that while the degree of bleaching in Sabah would require more studies to quantify, it seemed to have started in recent months based on the routine observations that have been on-going during regular dives in the area by UMS marine scientists.

Prof Saleem said the immediate causes could be unusual variations in temperature, dilution and sedimentation.

According to him, the dry spell and warmer conditions experienced in Sabah earlier this year (January-March) could have weakened the corals and dealt a blow to their resistance to environmental stress.

"A declining trend in the sea surface temperature anomaly that started in the second half of March 2010 from 1.5oC and transitioned to below 0.5oC over a vast part of the equatorial Pacific Ocean paved the way for rains that have been heavy at times in the recent weeks, leading to a large volume of run-off into coastal areas of Sepanggar Bay," he said.

Sedimentation was also another serious problem that needed immediate attention. Sediment run-off from the land-based activities and upwelling during the heavy rains have exacerbated the turbidity of the seawaters and covered the corals. Under this condition, corals already weakened by high temperature could not withstand increasing scale of sedimentation and dilution.

He said the possibility of unusual regional patterns emerging from global climatic change as factors responsible for coral bleaching cannot be ruled out.  The equatorial location of Sabah and the region around it makes it an active seat of hydrodynamics driven by changes in atmospheric conditions and ocean circulation. 

However, Prof Saleem said: "We should be prepared to face and examine oceanic patterns unfamiliar to us due to complications caused by climate change".

He said the UMS scientists were of the view that the climate change was worsening the serious problems facing the marine ecosystem.

"With acidification of ocean, altered hydrodynamic events and warming of the sea, the marine life is heading towards more dramatic consequences.

"At local level, we should reduce stress on the coastal marine ecosystem and build resilience in corals, and expedite the development of marine protected areas.This could be done by controlling sediment inputs to the marine environment and protect and restore the connectivity of corals with other associated marine critical habitats like mangroves and sea weeds," he said.


All global level, drastic reduction in carbon emission is the key factor in our fight against the effects of climate change.

Prof Saleem recommended that a sound and sustainable conservation policy has to be formulated as the economic costs of degradation or loss of marine habitats were enormous.
On another note, restricting access to Sipadan,  a world-renowned diving spot off Sabah, has increased the fish population following the Government's move to restrict the number of tourists and prohibit the setting up of resorts on the island five years ago.

This was among the findings of a five-day scientific expedition to Sipadan Island Park, which ended on Friday, Sabah Parks director Paul Basintal said.

The restriction has resulted in positive impact to coral growth in the 16,846ha park, thus preserving the area as a turtle feeding ground.

Forty-nine people took part in the expedition comprising researchers from Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Sabah Parks, Fisheries Department, Mineral and Geoscience Department and World Wildlife Fund for Nature.

Paul said Sabah Parks would formulate a management plan for Sipadan Island Park to preserve its marine resources in line with the move to gazette the area as a protected park last year. The plan, comprising short-term and long-term measures, will provide a more systematic management of the island's marine heritage,

Scientific data obtained during the expedition would serve as a guideline in formulating the plan.

Now the plankton too are dying

Remember my recent post on corals dying off the coast of West Malaysia? Global warming has also affected the plankton. We learnt in Geography that plant plankton are the foundation of the food chain. Even though they are tiny and sometimes not seen by the naked eye; their existence in the planet's oceans is important as they are a source of half the world's oxygen and helps reduce carbon dioxide levels. Reducing carbon dioxide in turn reduces the temperature of the Earth, making it cooler.

The latest journal, 'Nature' reported that Canadian scientists and a top government US scientist who have researched the population of plant plankton discovered that worldwide phytoplankton levels are down 40 percent since the 1950s. They blame it on global warming, which prevents the plant plankton to get vital nutrients, so the researchers say.

It is a vicious chain. When the seas are warm at the surface, it will not mix well with the colder waters below. It would then make it difficult for the plant plankton which are light and often live near the ocean surface to get nutrients in deeper, cooler water. It also matches other global warming trends, with the biggest effects at the poles and around the equator.


Half a million data points dating to 1899 show that plant plankton levels in nearly all of the world's oceans started to drop in the 1950s. The biggest changes are in the Arctic, Southern, equatorial Atlantic and equatorial Pacific oceans. Only the Indian Ocean is not showing a decline. The researchers said it's too early to say that plant plankton is on the verge of extinction.

When plant plankton reduces drastically, sea birds and marine mammals which feed on fish and other marine life will starve and die in huge numbers because the fish which feed on the plankton also dies, experts said. Ultimately, humans are also affected.

It is official:our sea levels are expected to rise

The Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Ministry Tan Sri Joseph Kurup quoted a national coastal vulnerability index study conducted by the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) in 2006, predicted that sea levels off the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia will rise by 10cm to 13cm in the next 100 years.

He added that sea levels on the west coast of Pulau Langkawi would rise by 10cm while at Tanjung Piai, Johor, it is expected to increase by 13cm. Tanjung Piai is the southernmost point of mainland Asia.

Checks revealed that 288.4km or 6% of the peninsula’s 4,809km-long coast is being eroded by sea water. The erosion of the seafront affects beach properties and sea related economic activities.It was reported that the Ministry is taking both short-term and long-term measures in response to the problem of coastal erosion.

Short-term measures include carrying out engineering works and construction of erosion control structures.

“So far, 140km of affected coastline have been rehabilitated. Among the areas rehabilitated are Kemaman beach (Terengganu), Kuala Sala Kecil and Kampung Kangkung, Yan (Kedah) and the Miri - Kuala Baram coastline in Sarawak,” added Kurup.

He said in the long-term, DID has implemented an integrated shoreline management plan to prevent shoreline erosion from worsening. No further details on the long term solution were provided.

Let us just hope that while the government rehabilitate the 288.4km of coastline affected, no new areas are  eroded; which is quite impossible. The DID would then be endlessly trying to patch up our shores.

The Corals Are Dying-Let Them Heal

The Corals are dying due to global warming. Today's news reported that several diving sites at marine parks in West Malaysia including the leading diving destinations in the world — Pulau Tioman in Pahang and Pulau Redang in Te­­rengganu – have been temporarily closed due to coral bleaching.


Divers and snorkellers are not allowed to the diving sites until the end of October, 2010 to protect the corals which have turned white due to global warming.

It was reported that about 500,000 tourists visit the marine parks every year, including foreigners.

Environmental groups have welcomed the move to close the dive sites temporarily, saying there is a need to allow the country’s corals to heal and recover. Preventing humans from visiting the corals would reduce the negative impact of human activities.

I just hope that the time frame given is enough for the corals. This decision however, would not go down well with the tourism industry as it would affect their projected financial performances. Tourists who have already confirmed their tourism packages to these sites would not be pleased either.


Update- read comments by Universiti Sains Malaysia marine biologist Prof Dr Zulfigar Yassin.

Dr Zulfigar said closing down the marine parks would certainly help the corals to recover. Since global warming is not a localised phenomena, the corals may take longer to revive. Reducing additional stress caused by sewage from chalets, oil and grease from motorboats and abuse by tourists also help.

When it doesn't pay to recycle

A recent news in the Features section of the Star, (I couldn't locate the link) on young recyclers in New Delhi, India sifting through rubbish to pick on 'e-waste' caught my attention. These destitute children should be at school instead of day in and day out rummaging through dismantled electronic equipment to prise out the integrated circuits, tiny transistors, capacitors from the discarded computers, printers and other electronic equipment. The children are unaware of the dangers they are exposing themselves.

It was reported by a United Nations survey that India would have 500% more e-waste fom old computers in 2020 than in 2007, and 18 times more hand phones.

The e-waste handlers risks detrimental effects on their respiratory, urinary and digestive systems besides reducing body immunity levels and getting exposed to carcinogens. Toxic metals and poisons enter the bloodstream during the laborious manual extraction process to recover gold, platinum, copper and lead using caustic soda and concentrated acids.

These children have no idea of the dangers they go through each day. There is no precautions taken such as using gloves, masks or ventilation fans. For these illiterate children who are desperate to work in search for a few rupees, it is either die of hunger now or die of metal poisoning later.

It was also reported that computers, television and mobile phones are most dangerous because they contain high levels of lead, mercury and cadmium. Among the 250 recyclers studied over 12 months, almost all suffered from asthma and bronchitis. Dangerous levels of lead, mercury and chromium-10 to 20 times higher than normal- were found in the subjects' blood and urine samples.

These poor children will be suffering from the effects of the time spent in the landfills before the Indian government enact laws to regulate the e-waste industry.

Our neighbour goes green

Singapore's Straits Times reports that its major developer, the Housing Development Board is embarking on a green project to install solar roof panels on 30 HDB blocks in 6 precincts across the City state. The project is expected to cost Sin2.3 million (RM5.3 million) or about RM177,000 per block. 

The roof panels will be used to power all common area services such as lighting, lifts and pumps. The precincts identified were: - Jurong, Aljunied, Telok Blangah, Bishan, Ang Mo Kio and Jalan Besar are expected to each save about $40,000 a year, according to the HDB.

The panels installed will serve about 3,000 flats and will cover a total area of 1.5 times the size of a football field. Each block will have about 150 of the panels, which measure s 1.8 metre by one metre and should last for 20 years or more.

It is heartening to note that Singapore is supporting efforts towards sustainable development. During my last visit to Singapore in June 2010, I had the impression that Singaporeans were a wasteful lot. The temperature at the hotel I stayed in was at if it was winter. I remembered the last time I shivered when performing my prayers was when it was winter in the UK during my student days.Besides the hotel, the airconditioning from the shopping malls could be felt while walking along the five foot ways.

Wild News

The Police, Customs and Perhilitan (Department of Wildlife and National Parks) Departments are having a wild time this past few days. Yesterday, the wild raid at a warehouse literally killed 2 birds with one stone. The police who were expecting to find stolen cars at a warehouse in Kuala Lumpur discovered more that they could chew. Together with the 42 stolen vehicles, valued at more than RM1million, they found :

A pair of the rare Bird of Paradise, also known as Cenderawasih in Malay, which supposedly has the power to bring good fortune to its owner. The pair is said to be worth RM1mil on the wildlife black market.

Other rare birds seized in the 3am raid were the blue-crowned Hanging Parrot, the black-coloured Palm Cockatoo and the white rump Shama. Altogether there were about 700 birds some of which had died.

Among the caged animals found at the warehouse were leopard cats, albino pygmy monkeys and numerous domestic cats, believed to be kept by their captors to cross-breed with wild cats to produce exotic offspring.

The Kuala Lumpur Wildlife Department deputy director Celescoriano Razond was reported to have said that  over 20 species of the animals and birds found at the warehouse were listed as protected wildlife.

Today's Star reported another rare find. Two luggage bags containing protected rare animals were confiscated by the Customs Department at KL International Airport.

This time it was the Director General of Perhilitan Datuk Abd Rasid Samsuddin who chose to report to the media that among the animals were 369 Radiated Tortoises, five Madagascar Tortoises, 47 Tomato Frogs and several chameleons. Imagine all these animals were packed in two hand luggages brought in by two women from Madagascar. (Reminds me of the animation movie "Madagascar").

The tortoises were bound with masking tape to prevent them from moving, while the chameleons were stuffed in socks to prevent detection. Imagine the pandemonium it would have caused had all the animals got loose in the plane!

In another case, Perhilitan officers seized products made from parts of endangered animals from a shop in Petaling Jaya. They recovered five tiger claws, two beaks of rhinocerous hornbills, two Sambar deer trophies, a handbag made from Asiatic cobra skin, a pair of shoes made from python skin, three feathers from Birds of Paradise, one Barking Deer trophy and 96 trophies made from elephant tusks.

I can understand the need for some people to be seen with exotic animal hides on their hands and skins but to believe that these rare animal parts provide sexual prowess is a bit hard to swallow. If one brings any living thing (animals and plants) one needs to abide by quarantine laws. Bringing them illegally is like opening the floodgates. What if these animals are carriers of dangerous diseases like ebola. We already have problems with bats, rats and domestic animals being carriers of dangerous viruses.

As they say, once the demand stops, the trafficking of these animals will also ceased. But more need to be done to get the demand to come to a halt.Full stop.