KOTA KINABALU – Paradise One, a famous dive site off Pulau Mabul, has been badly damaged by a giant barge.
Photos following the incident yesterday morning showed extensive damage to coral in the area, which is renowned for night dives and serves as a training site for Reef Check Malaysia eco-diver course participants.
The barge, loaded with building materials for a government project on the Sabah island, arrived in Mabul waters two nights ago.
A resort manager on Pulau Mabul, who spoke to The Vibes on condition of anonymity, tried to intervene when the barge’s crew attempted to land the vessel on the island.
“When we saw the barge anchored off the reef, I spoke to the contractor based on the island, explaining that a vessel of that size is too big to land safely on Mabul, and that he would need to use one that is a third of that barge’s size.
“I said the draft of the barge is larger than the available water space, even at high tide, and that if he tried to land the barge, it would get stuck on coral reefs and cause considerable damage.
“I’m so sad that the contractor did not heed my advice and warning. The damage is devastating.”
Adzmin Fatta, co-founder of local conservation group Green Semporna, said: “We have conducted successful marine conservation outreach programmes with the local community on Pulau Mabul for many years now.
“Many of our volunteers are horrified to see the damage. We have carried out many beach clean-ups in that particular area to protect the coral there.”
A resort owner, who also wished to remain anonymous, said it is heartbreaking to see a large part of Paradise One destroyed.
“We understand the importance of building infrastructure on the island for security purposes. We are grateful for this, and for security forces’ tireless work.
“However, we had hoped this would be done in an environmentally responsible manner.
“Mabul is a well-known tourist destination, with visitors travelling thousands of miles to come here.
“There are many threats facing marine ecosystems today, but we are proud of the fact that many tourism operators on Mabul have worked together to alleviate these threats.
“We want to build our island’s reputation as a responsible tourism resort and maintain the health of our coral reefs, without which, we wouldn’t have a livelihood.”
Pulau Mabul has a population of about 2,000, comprising mainly those from the Bajau and Suluk ethnic groups.
This is not the first time that Sabah’s precious corals have been damaged by shipping and other human activities. There have been concerns that excessive tourism has led to construction ativities on islands and reefs surrounded by sensitive corals.
In September 2019, a large part of the coral reefs near Kalampunian Island off Sabah’s northern Kudat waters were destroyed by a stranded cargo vessel.
The area forms part of the Tun Mustapha Marine Park. According to Sabah Parks, some 3,625 sq m of corals were identified to have been damaged.
In May 2006, a barge carrying sand, stones, steel pipes and heavy equipment to build RM5 million worth of tourist facilities such as toilets and restaurants on Sipadan island had reportedly scrapped off 100 sq m of coral near the divers’ drop-off points.
The contractor 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. According to reports, the company was only given approval to use a small boat known as “kumpit” to ship the building materials there. – The Vibes, June 26, 2021
