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Date Posted: 06:12:25 10/15/00 Sun
Author: Sea nymph
Subject: Using cyanide to kill fish is hazardous!

Just recently, I was listening to Karai radio when I heard that the people of Milne Bay use cyanide instead of poison roots, to kill fish. Mostly, the deed is done on the islands where they get the cyanide from illegal Japanese trawlers.
With research into marine life increasing, we should be proud of our coral reefs and try to maintain their status.
So, if you know of any 'culprits' who are using cyanide, advise them on its hazards as not only the coral reefs will undergo bleaching but people who eat fish-infested-cyanide will have food poisoning.

---------------------------------------------------------
From Post Courier Weekender:

Cleaning up the coastline
SATURDAY October 7 was a coastal clean-up day in major centres of the
country.
In Port Moresby the Prime Minister, Sir Mekere Morauta led volunteers who
cleared beaches and shallows of rubbish, especially plastic which is not only
an eye sore but more importantly a threat to marine life which sustains man.
Man is destroying the environment through various means, and once the balance
of the ecosystem is tipped, the impact on those whose life depends on the sea
as well as what everyone else can obtain from the sea is very profound. One of
the biggest sources of marine life is the coral reef, home to hundreds of fish and
animals and a popular hunting ground for man and the rest of the food chain. A
coral reef is like a botanical garden that is under water. It is also like a forest,
and home to many different species of marine life. When there is a coastal
clean-up campaign, people from the mountains or even those whose livelihood
actually depends on the sea may not see what the fuss is all about. But
examined carefully, and with awareness and education, it will be found that it
is in our interest to protect our environment.
There is a growing dislike for plastic, but there is also a heavy dependence on
the use of plastic. A middle line that everybody needs to take may be a sensible
handling of plastic and the dumping of other undesirable waste into the sea.
Plastic does not directly kill coral. But plastic in the coral garden would be an
eyesore just as on land. What plastic can do is affect the ecosystem in general.
A lot of animals such as turtles, dugongs, whales and dolphins consume plastic,
thinking it is food and it kills them. Plastic waste, in particular, is piling up in
mangroves, reefs and coastal areas. The greatest danger to coral is destructive
fishing practices. They include the use of cyanide, dynamite, anchorage from
boating activities, and even the traditional fish poisoning method where derris
root is used. Other land based activities that lead to the death of coral are:
sedimentation and run-off from the mainland caused by farming, inland
deforestation, coastal development, marine pollution which can smother coral
as well as temperature variations, natural diseases and predatation. The reefs
are occasionally damaged by fishermen who are mechanically breaking them in
order to catch live reef fish. Collecting live coral to sell to tourists as
souvenirs or to use as building blocks in construction, or the collection of live
coral for the production of lime for betelnut is another threat. Coral “bleach’’
turn white when they die due to all these different causes. The most frightening
thing of all is that it takes 250 years for coral to grow just one metre.PNG has
an extensive coastline that stretches over 17,110 km and an immense area of
sea encompassing 3,120,000sq km of which 40,000 sq km is coral reef. The
marine environment of Milne Bay accounts for 32 per cent of PNG’s total coral
reefs and contains a large range of different marine habitats, almost all of
which are in excellent condition. Milne Bay has an area of sea of about
110,000 sq km containing 13,000 sq km of coral reefs, easily becoming PNG’s
largest maritime province.
The province is not only a key conservation priority within PNG but also a
global priority within its own right.
Inventory work conducted by Conservation International (CI) continues to
uncover new species of coral, fish, endemics and other fauna. According to a
recent conservation assessment done by Pamela Seeto, technical adviser
(marine conservation), the area contains many globally rare species, including
endangered marine fauna such as the dugong. In 1997 and 2000, a Rapid
Assessment Program (RAP) expedition to Milne Bay recorded over 429
species of reef coral which is more than are found on the Great Barrier Reef.
PNG and its surrounding waters lie within the “coral triangle” , the global
epicentre of marine bio diversity that includes Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines, southern Japan and northern Australia. Pamela Seeto says the fish
diversity of Milne Bay surpasses that of other areas which have been surveyed
in the Coral Triangle and includes six endemic species. Milne Bay also
dominates the list of top fish sites (19 out of 21 sites) for combined RAP
surveys in Indonesia, PNG and the Philippines.
Seventy per cent of the earth’s surface is covered by oceans (98 per cent) of all
the water on the planet. PNG has one of the worlds’ longest coastlines, and
hosts some of the bioligically richest coastal marine environment on the planet.
In PNG people depend on coral reefs not only for food but also for cash
income and cultural practices. Coral reefs protect coastal villages and
coastlines from large waves caused by cyclones and storms and the skeletons
of corals eventually break down into sand which help build our beaches. In
addition to coral reefs PNG has extensive sea grass beds, mudflats, estuaries,
mangroves and other coastal ecosystems.
The richness of the country’s coastal zone makes it an area of intense human
activity. Fourteen of PNG’s 19 provinces are maritime provinces and the two
largest urban and industrial centres, Port Moresby and Lae are coastal cities.
Studies done by Pamela Seeto show that a quarter of the country’s four million
people live in rural coastal villages where they depend on marine resources.

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