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  Underwatertimes 24 May 06
Minister: Damage To Corals Near Sipadan Island Minimal;
Foreign Media Told To 'Stop the Exaggeration'

Underwatertimes 22 May 06
Sipadan Reef 'Probably Lost Forever' After Construction Barge Grounding; All Construction Halted

Channelnews Asia 21 May 06
Malaysia to probe serious coral damage at dive haven

Channelnews Asia 19 May 06
Malaysian diving haven faces closure over coral damage

Underwatertimes 18 May 06
Report: Barge That Destroyed Sipadan Coral Part of New Scuba Tourism Project; National Icon 'Damaged'
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my

 Bernama 18 May 06
Chong Considering Closing Sipadan
Thanks to alert from Jeffrey Low

KOTA KINABALU -- Deputy Chief Minister of Sabah Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat Thursday said that he was seriously considering closing Sipadan Island if people were so concerned about the environmental damage to the island and its surrounding areas of late.

It was reported that a barge carrying sand, stones, steel pipes, and heavy equipment to build RM5 million worth of tourist facilities like toilets and restaurants on the island had scrapped off hundred square metres of corals near the divers' drop-off points.

The damage was detected by two divers last Tuesday.

"People who are not happy with us may just exacerbate the situation and may exaggerate. Okay, but I am considering seriously of closing the island," he told reporters when he was asked to comment on the incident after officiating the "Sabah Museum Day 2006" at the state muzium here Thursday.

If everyone is so concerned, let the corals rest and regenerate as this would take time, while the Sabah Parks' rangers guard the island instead of letting people dive there in excess numbers, Chong, who is also Sabah Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment, said.

When asked on the damage to the corals, he said from the preliminary reports he received from the Sabah Parks, the surface corals were found to have been damaged.

However, he said the decision to close the island, one of the world's top diving spots, would depend on the federal and state government approvals.

When asked how the barge could sail to the protected island, he said the contractor who was involved in the project was not given any approval by Sabah Parks to use such a huge vessel to transport the building materials or equipment. Instead, the company was given the approval to use only a small boat known as "kumpit" locally to ship the building materials there.

Unfortunately, the officer of Sabah Parks who was in charge of the island went for a meeting in Kota Kinabalu for two days, leaving his subordinates and staff who did not have the guns or military force to stop the barge which suddenly appeared at the drop-off point, Chong said, explaining why the authorities could not stop the barge from entering Sipadan waters.

Chong said he was just as furious as anyone on the damage brought to the corals and that he had instructed the Director of Sabah Parks Datuk Lamry Ali to take appropriate action against the contractor.

Asked whether the contractor would be terminated, he said: "We have to wait and see... the contractor has been very cooperative and has admitted the faults."

He said the contract to build the toilets and restaurants which were more of the canteen types was awarded to a contractor appointed by the state Ministry of Finance. He said such amenities were needed to provide basic facilities for tourists including divers who travel from Semporna or nearby island resorts like Mabul to the island. -- BERNAMA

Channelnews Asia 19 May 06
Malaysian diving haven faces closure over coral damage

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's diving haven of Sipadan could be shut down to allow the delicate coral reefs to recover after a barge caused serious damage to the island, officials said Friday.

The vessel laden with materials and equipment to build new facilities on the island in eastern Sabah state, which is listed among the world's top 10 diving destinations, scraped off corals on three popular dive spots.

Sabah state tourism minister Chong Kah Kiat reacted angrily to reports of the damage which was detected by divers early this week. "I am considering seriously of closing the island," he was quoted as saying by the official Bernama news agency. "Let the corals rest and regenerate as this would take time, while the Sabah Parks' rangers guard the island instead of letting people dive there in excess numbers," he said.

Chong's aide, Mark Kong, said the proposal to close the island, which would require approval from the federal government, is "very much in its infancy."

"The government is studying the latest incident and the extent of the damage done by the contractor," he told AFP. "Based on the preliminary report on the encroachment, the government is not ruling out the closure of Sipadan as a solution. But that would be a last resort."

The barge was carrying sand, stones, steel pipes and heavy equipment to build toilets and restaurants for tourists on Sipadan as well as quarters for park rangers.

The island, which sits at the crown of a limestone spire rising hundreds of metres from the bed of the Celebes Sea, hosts a cornucopia of marine life that's been compared to Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

Concerns over environmental damage on Sipadan prompted the closure of five dive resorts on the island last year, after the government decided that only park rangers and security forces would be allowed to remain on the island overnight.

All the buildings were demolished except for a few used to house the rangers and host day-trippers. - AFP/ir

Underwatertimes 18 May 06
Report: Barge That Destroyed Sipadan Coral Part of New Scuba Tourism Project; National Icon 'Damaged'
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my

The giant barge that apparently beached and scraped off pristine corals at Sipadan's famous Dropoff Point was bringing in materials and heavy equipment to build a RM5 million tourism facility comprising a restaurant-cum-clubhouse, scuba shop, office and staff quarters, sources said.

Although well-intended to boost the island's tourism, the contractor had to first secure permission from Sabah Parks headquarters for all transportation activities for the project Parks officials would then supervise the movement of boats and materials into the island. This is where things supposedly went wrong.

It now appears that the contractor did not have permission to bring in the barge. Even it's application to bring in a "kumpit" (small indigenous boat) was not given until 16 May, 2006.

Attempts to get the contractor concerned for comments were unsuccessful.

May 13 to May 16 were days of full moon and high tides, but by May 14, the giant barge had already arrived, the sources said. The "disaster" happened when the barge was beached to off-load the massive cargo of gravel, sand, steel tubes, iron mesh, prime movers a large bulldozer by means of an onboard giant crane.

"If indeed true that the company had brought in the steel barge without a permit, as alleged, then the contractor should be charged for encroachment as well as for any damage caused to Sipadan," said Kadir Omar, President of Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) Sabah branch.

"This is the view of Malaysian Nature Society because they have damaged a national icon, damaging the very attraction that Sipadan has to offer to the world," he said. "The big question mark is if strict approval were needed for bringing in a small kumpit, why was such a huge monster mobilised without any permit?" Kadir asked.

Robert Lo, Managing Director of Sipadan Mabul Resort, is more pessimistic. "Not only the fantastic corals at the top of the Dropoff Point have been scraped off and flattened as seen on the Internet, but Sipadan's equally famous underwater cavern may now collapse because this giant barge is sitting right on top of it," he said.

Terence Lim, a former Dive Master Instructor with Sipadan Dive Centre, agreed with Robert Lo. Though the cave entrance is 60ft below water, its thinnest ceiling section is probably no more than 15-ft thick between it and the island's surface.

Terence noted that this underwater cavern was the very feature that attracted late dive legend Jacques Cousteau to Sipadan. To the left of the main chamber is a big chamber called Turtle Cavern where some turtles end up getting lost and die, leaving behind their skeletal remains. To the right is a tunnel which spirals downwards leading to the bottom, neither too deep not too shallow - a unique feature of Sipadan loved by many divers who actually use it to train for cave diving, four at a time the most .

"It is a very beautiful cave system about 100ft deep where the ceiling rises gradually inside and is very fragile," Robert said. "If that thin ceiling collapses, the beach will collapse and part of the island will collapse as well," Robert added.

"This is why the barge must be pulled out immediately. It is in the wrong place," he said. "Once this roof collapses, it is too late," Robert added. "We don't even allow our paying divers to stand on corals, but here a huge barge had scraped them off and is sitting on the coral reef," lamented Robert. "We all feel very sad."

Terence Lim said below the big drop-off is the habitat which guarantees sighting of the spectacle of hundreds of giant humhead parrot fish which sets off to feeding from here early each morning, then swim towards Barracuda Point and around the islands reefs.

"So the Dropoff is the site where we will take our divers at 5.30am to see them come up to nibble at the coral tips before moving on and then return at night to sleep," Terence said. "The wealth of spectacular corals at the Dropoff is the reason we see a diversity of hundreds of species of fish, large and small but much of that coral scene apparently and been scraped clean, judging from Andrea's (internet) pictures," he said.

"The Internet pictures also reveal a table coral completely covered by gravel which apparently fell from the barge ," Terance said.

Channelnews Asia 21 May 06
Malaysia to probe serious coral damage at dive haven

KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysia has ordered an investigation into an incident in which coral reefs off the dive haven of Sipadan island were seriously damaged by a barge, leaving divers and environmentalists reeling.

Chief Minister Musa Aman of Sabah state ordered the immediate investigation after the ship last week levelled reefs over an area reports described as at least the size of two tennis courts.

"He said that he wanted a full probe on the issue, that what had happened was absolutely unacceptable," a Sabah state official told AFP. "He also blasted the Sabah Parks, which is under the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment... for failing to carry out its duties in monitoring activities on the island," said the official.

WWF-Malaysia said the damage was a "terrible occurrence" that underscored the ongoing destruction of reefs in the Semporna coastal area of Sabah state, located on Borneo island.

"Sipadan is considered to be a world treasure for its dramatic undersea landscapes, steep drop-offs and abundant wildlife," said WWF-Malaysia Marine Coordinator Ken Kassem in a statement released Sunday to AFP.

"The recent accident is no doubt a terrible occurrence. However, one must consider the larger picture," he said.

Dynamite and cyanide fish occur frequently, while pollution and coastal development are threatening reefs and mangroves in Semporna, said WWF.

Divers Andrea and Antonella Ferrari, editors with a Singapore-based dive magazine, said they witnessed the barge anchored off Sipadan scraping away coral as it was beached by winds.

"The barge's flat steel hull wiped corals away like a giant knife slicing through butter," a distraught Andrea Ferrari wrote in a blog on the magazine's website. The incalculable damage left "a veritable wall of coral and debris piled up against the beach," he wrote.

The barge had been laden with material for building facilities for day-trippers on the island, which is rated as among the world's top 10 diving destinations.

But divers have questioned why the vessel was near the island, which the government last year closed to all but day-trippers over concerns of increasing environmental damage.

"We don't really know exactly what happened at this point, but it points to negligence by Sabah Parks," the state official said.

Sipadan island sits at the crown of a limestone spire rising hundreds of metres from the bed of the Celebes Sea and has been lauded worldwide for its thriving marine life. Sabah officials have said Sipadan might be closed indefinitely to allow the corals to recover. - AFP /dt

Underwatertimes 22 May 06
Sipadan Reef 'Probably Lost Forever' After Construction Barge Grounding; All Construction Halted

Kota Kinabalu, Malaysai: Andrea Ferrari, who alerted the diving world to the damage to Sipadan’s corals, said he was taken aback but pleased by the effect his blog has had. But he is saddened that the reef may never recover.

Italians Andrea and Anthonella Ferrari, a renowned underwater photography and writing team who have published several books on the area, reported on their blog on a Singapore-based dive magazine’s website that a barge carrying tonnes of construction materials was beached on the island two weekends ago.

By last Monday, the steel hull had scraped clean part of the coral reef near the island's drop-off point, dismaying the international diving community and leading to an official enquiry.

What saddens Andrea though, is that he believes the reef may never recover. "The damage is very serious. Small corals take about 30 years to grow back and reefs, much, much longer. That reef is probably lost forever," he said.

Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister and Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat said the barge was carrying materials to build a tourist facility. Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman denied approving the project and ordered a halt to all construction on the island.

He has also ordered an official enquiry. "We support the State Government’s decision to halt all construction on the island. And if anything is to be built in the future, then let it be small, simple structures of environment-friendly materials like wood," Ferrari said.

However, he said, closing the island to divers might not be in the island’s best interests. "Dive operators and avid divers can be Sipadan’s best partners in safeguarding its reef. "We can work with the Government to protect the island’s environment," he said.

The Underwatertimes 24 May 06
Minister: Damage To Corals Near Sipadan Island Minimal;
Foreign Media Told To 'Stop the Exaggeration'

Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia (May 24, 2006 20:39 EST)

Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat said Wednesday the damage to corals at Sipadan Island caused by a barge on May 14 was "very minimum" but was blown out of proportion by the foreign media.

Speaking to reporters after briefing the cabinet on the Sipadan issue, here Wednesday, Chong who is also the State Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment said the damage was not substantial, where only 0.1 per cent of Sipadan's 208 hectares of ecosystem was affected by the incident.

"The damage to the corals has been blown out of proportion. Last weekend, Sabah Parks sent in a team of qualified officers and divers to do a survey headed by Dr Jamili Nais, Assistant Director of the Sabah Parks, who is himself a qualified diver.

"They came back yesterday. The findings of the survey were contrary to the report in the internet and by all the so-called concerned people.

"I just came back from Kuala Lumpur after briefing the Chief Secretary of the Government. News in Kuala Lumpur (said that the damage) is 2-3 kilometres of corals near an area known as Abdillah Point (drop-off). All this was blown out of proportion. Actually the area affected was just 3,984 square feet (372.2 square metres)," Chong said.

The whole Sipadan Island ecosystem or coral reef surrounding the island is about 208 hectares and the island (land area) itself is only about 13.5 hectares.

"We thank them (foreign media) for their concern. But stop the exaggeration. Be rational. Malaysians and Sabahans especially are as concerned as anybody (else) in the world when it comes to conservation and preservation of the environment.

According to Chong, what angered the government was that the contractor was not honest when using a large barge to transport their building materials to the island instead of using the "kompit" (small boat) which was stated in their application and approved by the authorities.

He said the contractor had of course been summoned by the Sabah Parks, and had apologised and admitted that they were in the wrong.

On immediate action to be taken, Chong said the contractor that had been awarded a RM5 million contract to build public facilities like sewerage, a clubhouse and toilets for tourists and divers, had been directed to carry out cleaning works on the affected corals.

Chong said the basic facilities were important to avoid human waste being directly dumped into the sea, adding that all works on the island were being suspended as instructed by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman.

In KUALA LUMPUR, the Director of Universiti Malaysia Sabah's (UMS) Bornoe Marine Research Institute (BMRI), Prof Dr Saleem Mustafa said coral reef destruction at Sipadan had become its top priority and a preliminary report on the incident was expected to be out in two weeks.

He said the institute would start a scientific research, to be led by two of its experts, as soon as possible to analyse the damage done and submit recommendations. "We need to examine the whole issue, we cannot give a general opinion (on the case) right now.

"We hope scientific projects like what we will be doing will be taken into consideration to provide sustainable development in Sipadan," he told Bernama when contacted Wednesday.

According to Prof Saleem, the research would be a holistic one based on scientific data to look after long-term sustainable development of the island waters. "There is an impact arising from tourism on the marine ecosystem. "But what we are trying to look at is preserving the corals and at the same time, ecotourism can still continue. We can promote ecotourism as long as it does not disrupt the ecosystem there," he said.
source: http://www.bernama.com
links
WWF-Malaysia: Sipadan Reef Damage Assessed on the finsonline blog
Perspective: The Sipadan Saga Tony Wu shifts through the debate and gets to the heart of the matter on the finsonline blog
Sipadan-A tragic incident corals destroyed by grounded construction barge on the finsonline blog
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