Creation of artificial coral reefs begins
Creation of artificial coral reefs begins
PULAU PANJANG, Seribu Island (JP): Minister of Marine Affairs
and Fisheries Sarwono Kusumaatmadja launched on Saturday an
artificial coral reef plantation in Seribu Island waters, dubbed
the model of a movement to save the country's deteriorating coral
reefs and boost the fish production.
"Other countries in Southeast Asia and the United States have
developed the use of artificial coral reefs from ship or car
wreckages to build a home for fish. I was told that Malaysia's
fish production increased up to 300,000 tons thanks to artificial
coral plantations," Sarwono told The Jakarta Post during the
cruise on board Baruna Jaya I research vessel.
Artificial coral reefs account for some 70 percent of the fish
production in Japan, Sarwono said, adding that the artificial
barriers are also effective to block trawlers.
"If a trawler tries to break into a sea zone which is
protected by the special barrier, it can instantly damage the
ship," the minister added.
A total of 96 tons of assembled concrete blocks and tires
measuring 340 cubic meters were planted at several spots on the
islands' water in a depth of less than 30 meters on Saturday to
add to the existing 40 tons of similar materials which were
placed at the bottom of the Situbondo sea off East Java in
September.
Each assembled concrete block is worth an estimated Rp
600,000.
"The materials, which are set in the form of pyramid, are
colored in either green, red or blue to find out the fish
preference for their home," head of the technical service unit of
Baruna Jaya Basri M. Ganie said.
"The artificial coral reefs are mostly made of concrete to
allow them to last for 20 years. If we use natural materials such
as limestone, it will only last for three to four years," Basri
said.
The ministry, in cooperation with the Agency for Assessment
and Application of Technology (BPPT) and the Navy, will also
develop a national-scale mapping of the artificial coral reefs.
Experts from the Navy and BPPT have introduced the Electronic
Navigational Chart (ENC), a system to create an electronic map
which is later attached to electronic chart displays and
information.
The technology allows accurate ship positioning, measures the
speed and course of the ocean currents and improves ship safety
as it can identify objects and devices.
"We have to identify the flow of water currents, the sea
depth, salinity and other hydrological factors before placing the
artificial coral reefs. If it's too deep, sunlight cannot reach
it and no fish will stay. Usually we can see the result in three
to four months," Basri said.
An assembled artificial coral reef commonly attracts hundreds
of fishes, such as kakap, kerapu and stingray .
One cubic meter of artificial coral reef hosts between eight
to 18 kilograms of fish, and it could develop up to 10
centimeters within a year, explained Hartanta Tarigan, director
of Marine Technology of the Ministry of Marine Affairs and
Fisheries.
Sarwono also called on local fishermen and members of
Kepulauan Seribu community to protect the sites of the reef
plantations as they are sources of income.
"We plan to develop fishing sites by planting as many
artificial coral reefs as possible in Kepulauan Seribu area so
the emerging sand zone can be preserved and the reefs will grow
for at least two or three years," Sarwono told fishermen from
Pulau Kelapa and Pulau Harapan on board the research vessel.
The minister asked the fishermen to stop the use of explosives
in fishing.
During the session, the fishermen complained about the unclear
implementation of regional autonomy Law No. 22/1998 especially on
sea zone boundaries between provinces.
"We were sailing up north and suddenly we were told by other
fishermen that we cannot fish there because they claimed the sea
was theirs," H. Rojali of Harapan Island said.
Sarwono asserted that the sea belongs to every Indonesian.
"All Indonesians can fish anywhere within the country's territory
so long as they do not litter the sea," he said. (edt)