Marine resources a major concern for Bali

Marine resources a major concern for Bali

DENPASAR, Bali (ANTARA): The tourist island of Bali is struggling to save its priceless marine resources and to protect its coastal areas from serious environmental damage.

I Gde Nurjaya, spokesman of the Bali provincial government, said the rapid development of tourism industry affected the condition of coastal areas on the island.

"Such an integrated program is important in terms of ecological, economical, social and cultural contexts," Nurjaya said.

Through the integrated coastal management system, it is expected that problems concerning the destruction of sea and coastal territory will be overcome.

The implementation of the system is also expected to benefit local people living in nearby villages.

Nurjaya said Bali had 430 kilometers of coastline. About 64.85 kilometers of the coastal area were in a dilapidated condition. In Buleleng regency, 16.2 kilometers of coastline were seriously damaged, followed by Badung regency (11.5 kilometers) and Klungkung (7.6 kilometers)

The destruction was mainly (85 percent) caused by natural problems such as erosion and storms. Development projects like reclamation and illegal sand quarrying have also caused environmental damage.

Bali is now facing breakneck water problems, such as the decreasing quality of seawater because of uncontrolled waste dumping by many hotels operating on the island. The quality of seawater in Kuta beach, Benoa and Candidasa beach in East Bali is worsening, Nurjaya said.