Cyanide Fishing is another popular practice, connected principally to the live fish trade, an industry worth upward of US$800 million a year. Reef species like Grouper are highly prized by consumers in Hong Kong and Mainland China, who’ll pay upwards of US$100 a kilo – so long as it’s alive and in a tank. Cyanide is simply the most efficient way of catching Grouper without killing them – divers squirt the poison into the reef, stunning the fish so they can be easily caught. A quick injection of tetracycline – a powerful antibiotic – usually keeps it alive, so it can be served up to diners, few of whom have any idea of how their fish was caught or where it came from.
Fortunately, things are changing for the better in the Coral Triangle. All six governments have signed up to the Coral Triangle Initiative a multilateral partnership dedicated to enacting change at the policy level and supporting intelligent ecosystems management that works for the environment and for communities. For example, Indonesia has enacted a nationwide ban on the killing of manta rays and has established shark sanctuaries across the archipelago. West Papua was recently declared the world’s first conservation province. In Malaysia, a 1.6 million hectare marine park is set to officially open in June 2016.
Nature based tourism is a key strategy, as more and more adventure travellers, divers, surfers and sun seekers are discovering the remoter parts of the bioregion. There is huge potential to develop sustainable tourism operations with local communities, so that thriving ecosystems are seen as valuable assets. With the help of N.G.O’s like WWF, The Nature Conservancy and Conservation International, forward thinking local government officials and business owners, a network of connected destinations is springing up around the Coral Triangle.
The Coral Triangle website tells the story of this singular bioregion – from travel features to hard hitting news stories to stunning photo essays. It also connects users with the best eco resorts, boats and tour operators in the Asia Pacific through the sustainable tourism portal.
The big idea is to establish the Coral Triangle as an icon of the natural world so that we can make sure that it thrives. That way, in 50 years time, our kids and grandkids will be able to visit the richest reefs on earth, instead of watching archive footage on the latest virtual reality device…
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