'Coral reef damage not serious'

JAKARTA (JP): North Jakarta Mayor Suprawito acknowledged yesterday that there has been damage to coral reef in the Seribu island chain, north of Jakarta, but said it was not serious.

"I regularly visit the area and have found that the damage is not serious," Suprawito said, as quoted by Antara.

He called on those claiming to have found damage to the coral reef to prove it scientifically.

The most recent expert finding of damage to the coral in the Seribu islands came from JRE Harger, a UNESCO oceanologist, who added that the condition of the coral in the islands was getting worse.

Harger said that, last month, 27 world experts who conducted research in the Jakarta Bay last September revealed that the coral was suffering as a result of a number of factors.

Marine pollution, the use of chemicals for fishing, coral theft and natural diseases were cited as the major problems undermining the health of the coral reefs. (sur)