Of course, considering it's a contest there is no guarantee that they'll chose my submission so I'm posting it here so that it can get out to the world regardless of whether it makes the cut or not.
The following write up is about the battle to rebuild the coral reefs around Koh Tao, Thailand. I learned to dive there and it holds a very special place in my heart. I want to make sure that the reefs around Koh Tao remain vibrant and alive so that others can learn to dive there and have their eyes opened to the amazing world under the waves.
Help Support the Coral Nurseries of Koh Tao, Thailand!!!
Koh Tao is a small island located off the western coast of mainland Thailand. Known as the diving mecca of the country, Tao boasts good diving and affordable dive certifications year round. One of Tao’s many draws is its close proximity to a variety of excellent dive sites, coral gardens and reefs. For the people of Tao ,the reefs and the marine life that call them home are not only important for their economy but also for their identity. Unfortunately, global climate changes as well as local stressors such as overfishing, the pollution from the exponential growth of tourism in the area has resulted in the wide scale degradation of the local marine ecosystem. Coral cover around Koh Tao is sadly being lost at a rate faster than it can recover and faster than the local business and dive operators can protect it.
Faced with severe bleaching during the summer of 2010 due to a rise in ocean temperatures and the increasing loss of coral in the area due to the activities of inexperienced divers and tourists, several dive operators on the island have taken action to bring the reefs of Koh Tao back to life. Big Blue Diving, one of the largest dive operators on the island, is a main player in the island’s “adopt a reef” program. The program’s aim is to set up coral nurseries around the island’s major dive sites in addition to teaching local dive operators and businesses about data collection, coral transfer and preparation techniques.
Koa Tao currently has a number of coral nurseries around the island utilizing and testing various restoration techniques. The aims of the program are three fold. Firstly, the coral nurseries provide a means for repairing and “replanting” the coral that is being lost around the island. Secondly, these coral nurseries provide an excellent opportunity to test and research various approaches to coral restoration and thirdly, the nurseries provide an invaluable opportunity to educate divers about the fragile ecosystem on which their hobby/employment depends. By the end of last year, Koh Tao had 48 coral nursery tables in place with very promising results. For example, the tables tended by the eco staff at Big Blue had several excellent samples of threatened corals growing quickly and even a school of 21 juvenile tiera batfish who have taken up residence in the nursery. These scenes are being played out around the island in nurseries set up by a variety of Tao dive operators.
Unfortunately, these nurseries cannot flourish without consistent care and tending by individuals who are dedicated to repairing and revitalizing Koh Tao’s ecosystem. The program is also always in need of publicity and financial donations which can be used to build more nurseries and fund larger research projects in the area.
Koh Tao is a “gateway” into the world of diving for thousands of people every year. With every new diver certified, another pair of eyes is opened to the beauty of the sea and the fragile ecosystems that exist there. Unfortunately, as Koh Tao certifies more and more divers, the reefs that have been their classrooms are slowly fading away. I am submitting the coral nurseries of Koh Tao (under the umbrella of the Save Koh Tao Group) for consideration because I believe that the first step to conservation is creating an awareness of and appreciation for the beauty of what is being destroyed. We need to keep the reefs around Koh Tao vibrant and alive so that more divers can learn to dive there. I’ve never met a certified diver who didn’t feel passionate about protecting marine ecology. If we can continue to create new divers, we can continue to create new conservationists. Keeping the reefs of Koh Tao alive is a major step in this battle.
If you’d like to learn more about the efforts of Save Koh Tao to rebuild Tao’s reefs please visit the following websites:
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| tending to some little babies on their way |
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| tending to the coral being regrown |
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| given a second lease on life - Koh Tao coral nurseries |
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| The new guards of the coral nursery on Sairee Beach - 21 tiera batfish! |
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| Some of the folks at Big Blue Diving building the nursery tables |
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| Grow babies! Grow!!! |
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| Installing the nurseries around Koh Tao |
Oh, and while you're at it. HELP ME WIN so that I can help the fishies and coral in Bali too!
We're down the wire. I need the big push to the end.
Like my page, post a comment, take a picture, make a video. I need you to help me WIN WIN WIN.
I am leaving in about 6 hors to head to... BALI! ya that's right. Half-term so I'm heading back to my home away from home to get a bit of diving in (with Blue Season Bali of course!) and to see some of my Balinese buddies. Put the Bintang on ice...HERE I COME!!!
Cheers from the Battlefield!
J
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