IMPORTANT! TO ALL MEMBERS!

We have been asked to provide photographic evidence of nets on reef in order to initiate a net cleanup.
Could I ask members who are equipped with underwater cameras and happen to come across a very nasty net, to take pictures of the same and post them on the forum.
The information we need is:
• exact location (if possible more precise than just the name of the dive site!)
• at what depth the net was found
• date taken
• estimated size (if possible)
• any other particular observations

Please post the photos and information on the forum via this link

Environmental Update September 2009

It has been quiet on the environmental activity site of BSAC for some time, and this is predominantly due to me having been too busy with other things and partially due to the club having had various other, more urgent issues.
The one thing that we are often upset about are old fishing nets covering the coral reef of some of our favourite dive sites. Only recently I found that one of my personal favourites is literally covered in nets and cleaning this one up is number one on the agenda at the moment.
To clean up fishing nets in Oman requires the permission of the Ministry of Environment, so it isn’t as simple an act as it might seem, but we have succeeded before (see below) and hope to do so again.

Planned activity for the winter is to initiate a coral reef watch program in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment. More about this on the site soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Great Marine Project is a collection of unique marine sites in the world that require our marine studies and monitoring in order to effect positive change in the way the marine wilderness is managed in the future. The project is run by WOX, an international environmental and social projects management company based in Malaysia, Mauritius, India and the UK. The aim of WOX is to create meaningful experiences through endangered species conservation and operating in a responsible and ethical manner, creating positive benefits to the destinations it works in.

The Great Marine Project (GMP) has two main goals number one is to increase the turtle populations of the Perhentian Islands and the second is to preserve corals using a suite of marine volunteer programmes which will help towards establishing relevant conservation. The work and research carried out by during our programs is supported by an experienced team of project coordinators, dive instructors and conservationists, focusing on the endangered treasures of marine habitats; turtles, coral reefs and the myriad of animal and plant life in this unique and diverse underwater world.

Our projects in Malaysia are based around successful turtle nesting beaches and important coral reefs that act as feeding grounds for marine wildlife and essential ecosystems. As a marine volunteer, you will work with the Government, local communities and dive centres to preserve the marine environment and learn more about the conservation of these environments.

Turtle populations in Malaysia have dropped alarming in the last 50 years with the populations of Leatherback turtles falling by 99% and it is feared they are on the brink of extinction in Malaysian waters. You will help run beach patrols, maintain turtle nests and marine educational programmes which help to protect the turtle populations of the Perhentian Islands. Marine volunteers also conduct coral reef surveys and if a group from your club come along we can get you involved in coral transplanting and building new artificial reefs using dead coral substrate. All divers enjoy the coral transplanting and when we have built the artificial reefs before the groups have often returned to see how the fish have settled in. We will send all divers building who participate in building an artificial reef monthly data to keep you up to date on your project.

The Great Marine Project would like to invite you, and a group of your friends to the Perhentian Islands, Malaysia to join in with turtle and coral conservation.

By day you will dive and if you come as a group you will get the chance to build and name your very own artificial reef then transplant stressed coral onto it. By night protect highly endangered mother green turtles while they nest on our beach. What better way to spend your time than to dive with a purpose by day and protect nesting mother turtles by night.

Put meaning to your dives - dive with the great marine project.

Bander Koran Cleanup 2007

On finding that one of our favourite dive sites had been heavily swamped by several detached nets, Muscat Divers decided to stage a clearing dive.

The nets were draped over the coral in one of the prettiest dive sites we visit. Fortunately the depth was from 2 ­ 10m so from a technical point of view it was fairly low risk. However, any dive of this nature carries with it some risk so it was carefully planned by our most experienced dive manager, Neil Bedwin, who has over 2000 logged dives and 2 decades experience. The dive was open to divers of all ages and grades, so Neil took care to ensure that newer divers were particularly well briefed and even those who had done clearance before were reminded of safety procedures. It was bad enough seeing so many dead and dying fish without adding a few members to their number. And of course we needed to ensure that we didn't do a whole lot more damage to the reef by our efforts. Not much was needed in the way of equipment ­ a stout pair of kitchen scissors and a supply of plastic bags for buoyancy did the trick, with some time out for posing for the in house photographer and video team.

The snippers snipped and the buouyers buoyed, while the top cover in boats pulled in the wreckage ­ which rapidly smelled up the boats something terrible!

It was amazing just how much apparently dead stuff came back to life once we were able to to snip away the strangling cords, including some crabs and lobsters who woke up cross and snappy.

Of course there´s not much point cleaning up a reef unless you dispose of the mess decently. It was all hauled back to the marina and taken to land fill.

The following week we went back to BK Island and it was marvelous to see our favourite BK site back to close to its best.