By Olivia Miwil - June 28, 2021 @ 1:21pm
SEMPORNA: Divers lamented that healthy corals at the Paradise 1 dive site of Mabul Island here have been wiped out after being damaged by a barge landing near the island.
The site, once flourished with healthy and rare coral colonies, is as flat as a football field after the large vessel carrying construction materials for Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) forward operating base landed near the island.
Underwater photographer Andy Chia Chee Shiong said the Paradise 1 site was his second home where he learned underwater photography, between 2006 and 2009.
"Paradise 1 dive site is how Mabul got famous internationally as a macro heaven.
"However, what was formerly a coral paradise is now a graveyard of broken corals," he said, adding it was disappointing that the incident wiped out the site overnight when many have been working towards preserving the marine life for years.
Echoing the same sentiment is Blu Hope co-founder Monica Chin who said environmental destruction kept on happening despite talks on protecting nature and preserving biodiversity.
"There have been promotions on scuba diving (in Sabah) over the world and talks to encourage our community on environmental and marine conservation.
"But, I feel like a fool when news like this (Mabul incident) happens, even after similar incidents which occured in Sipadan in 2006 and Kudat in 2019, as well as other fish bombings and commercial fishing vessels," she said, questioning whether the contractor was monitored while doing the construction work at the island.
Chin, who is also Sabah's first trainer and ambassador for Ocean Quest Global on coral reefs rehabilitation, said the state is blessed as it has the most biodiversity from Mount Kinabalu, one of the oldest rainforest and ocean located within the Coral Triangle Initiative.
"These are the most valuable assets which can sustain and feed many generations.
"To preserve all this unique biodiversity we do not need heavy fancy development, we just need to maintain and improve the quality of the existing one," she said, adding true leaders would lead by examples and would take the necessary course of action for the future of Sabah.
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