Beach clean-up to kick off International Year of the Reef

KOTA KINABALU: The International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) has declared 2018 as the third International Year of the Reef (IYOR). IYOR is a global effort which aims to increase awareness and understanding about the values of, and threats to, coral reefs and to support related conservation, research and management efforts.

Reef Check Malaysia (RCM) is planning various activities in Malaysia in conjunction with IYOR 2018 and hopes to work with local partners, including the government, tourism industry and NGOs on this important initiative.

IYOR 2018 aims to strengthen global awareness of coral reefs and associated ecosystems, promote partnerships and share information between stakeholders for the sustainable management of coral reefs, as well as identify and implement effective management strategies for conservation and sustainable use of these ecosystems. This is in line with the RCM's current efforts in Malaysia, which is to focus on helping stakeholders to implement sustainable coral reef management.

IYOR 2018 provides an opportunity to extend efforts to raise awareness among Malaysians about the value and importance of coral reefs, the threats they face and what they can all do to contribute to reef conservation.

RCM will kick off its IYOR 2018 programme with a beach clean-up in March 2018. This clean-up effort will be conducted with several of its partners on the islands of Tioman, Mantanani, Sibu Tinggi, Pangkor, Perhentian and Mabul.

This effort was aimed to highlight the issue of marine debris, specifically plastic waste, which represents a serious threat to marine ecosystems.

Recent photos from Tioman and Mantanani islands clearly demonstrated the need for action.