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Submitted by Reef Check Malaysia
INTERNATIONAL COASTAL CLEANUP (ICC) 2024 – MALAYSIA
The International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) Day for 2024 took place worldwide on September 21st. RCM has been coordinating the ICC in Malaysia for several years with the help of many partners and sponsors, as well as thousands of enthusiastic volunteers.
This year, a total 8,356 volunteers gathered at hundreds of locations across Malaysia to remove a whopping 41,014 kg (90,422 lbs) of trash from beach and underwater clean-ups. The total number of items collected was 388,730! Here is a breakdown of the Top 5 items and how many of them were found during the 2024 ICC:
Top 5 Items
Beverage bottles (plastic): 50,785
Cigarette butts: 39,584
Plastic/ foam pieces: 38,801
Grocery bags (plastic): 28,456
Food wrappers (candy, chips, etc): 20,739
These top five items are all plastics, and they account for 45.9% of all trash collected for the entire month of September. Marine debris is one of the greatest threats our ocean faces, and clean-up efforts such as the ICC play a significant role in reducing the amount of damage done to this precious ecosystem. All the data collected is recorded on the Clean Swell app, and it helps scientists and managers around the world make better decisions when it comes to tackling the issue of trash on both a global and national scale. More information about ICC can be found here. A complete report on the 2024 ICC in Malaysia will be released soon on our website and social media channels, so stay tuned!
KOD BLUE: LAUT NEEDS YOU 2024 (LAUT: SEA)
Reef Check Malaysia’s Kod Blue: Laut Needs You 2024 (Kod Blue 2024) is part of the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) effort. 77 volunteers for Kod Blue 2024, which happened on September 7, collected 757.7 kg (1,670 lbs) of trash from the beach cleanup and 50.8 kg (112 lbs) of trash from the underwater cleanup. The trash collected largely consisted of plastic water bottles (1,935 bottles), foam dock pieces (580 pieces) and footwear (243 slippers/shoes). The underwater cleanup team also removed 62 Crown-of-Thorns starfish (COT), which are predators of corals. Read more about this exciting event here.
STRENGTHENING THE COMMUNITY MARINE CONSERVATION GROUPS (CMCGs) IN MALAYSIA
Our community groups based on the islands have been continuously improving themselves with new skills. Recently, seven members of the Redang Marine Conservation Group (RMCG) completed their training and are now certified EcoDivers. To date, 12 RMCG members have been trained as EcoDivers and they help conduct surveys in and around Redang Island. Members of RMCG have also been conducting various other activities including coral reef bleaching monitoring, reef rehabilitation efforts and monitoring, as well as reef biodiversity monitoring, besides keeping the reefs safe from ghost nets and other threats.
Meanwhile over in Semporna, Sabah, nine members of the Selakan Marine Conservation Group (SMCG) have been elected as Honorary Park Rangers under Sabah Parks*. They participated in a 3-day Honorary Park Ranger Training at the Sabah Parks Office in Tun Sakaran Marine Park. The trained youths are now able to enforce Section 48 under the Parks Enactment 1984, which is to protect the integrity of the park’s natural resources from any damages or illegal alterations. The training was conducted as a part of the Sea Patrolling project funded by The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. Similar to other CMCGs, the SMCG conducts many conservation-related activities around their island.
*Sabah state government agency that manages national parks and reserves within Sabah
COMMUNITY-LED SEA PATROLLING PROJECT
The Selakan Marine Conservation Group (SMCG) recently kicked off the community-led sea patrolling project around Selakan Island. During the first patrolling session, they engaged with two fishermen (from mainland) who were seen fishing within the community managed area. The team from SMCG had a very practical approach: they engaged all the fishermen in a respectful manner, took some time to conduct a simple interview, explained the concept of the community managed area (to protect the marine resources around the island and ensure its sustainability) and advised the fishermen against fishing in the area. To date, the SMCG has prevented more than 12 boats from encroaching into the community-managed area in Selakan Island, two of which were fish bombing boats.
HANDS-ON CONSERVATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP
Our colleagues and the Tioman Marine Conservation Group (TMCG) often receive volunteer groups coming to the island to conduct several conservation activities for students or organizations. Such collaborations hope to increase awareness among participants and emphasize our responsibility to protect and conserve the marine environment.
In the past two months, the TMCG hosted a partner company and a school group. Among the activities conducted included an underwater clean up and population control of the Crown-of-Thorns starfish (COTs). As for the school students, they had the opportunity to help our team with recycling glass bottles using a glass crusher. They then used the crushed glass pieces to make “coral pots” which will be used in our reef rehabilitation efforts.
MARINE ECOSYSTEM EDUCATION FOR SOUTH OF JOHOR’S YOUTH
Our colleagues in Mersing have been spending time with the local schools in South of Johor, conducting many awareness programs for close to 170 students of different ages. We conducted indoor sessions on coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass as well as the importance of marine sanctuaries. Two groups of students also had the opportunity to attend a school trip to a marine sanctuary, during which they watched an interactive reptile show and explored mangrove habitats. All these activities aimed to introduce the various ecosystems found in Johor as well as cultivate a better appreciation of their significance through visits to these ecosystems.
