Posted inArticle /

Marine conservation areas in Indonesia reaches 16.5 million hectares

Jakarta, Ekuatorial – Director of Conservation Area and Fish of the Ministry of Marine and Fisheries, Agus Dermawan, claimed that marine conservation areas in Indonesia have reached 16.5 million hectares from the target of 20 million hectares by 2020, in Jakarta, on Saturday (7/3).

“After being initiated in 1980s, marine conservation areas have reached 16.5 million hectares of five percent from the total marine areas in Indonesia,” said Dermawan claiming that it had exceeded target in 2012, when Indonesia had reached 15.78 million hectares.

Furthermore, Agus said that the ministry managed its areas through zone system, which include core zone, utilization zone, and sustainable fisheries zone.

“The core zone is the area where there are no activities except for research and education,” he said. “Meanwhile, utilization zone is meant for non-extractive activities, such as marine tourism.”

Yovita Ayu, Miss Scuba Indonesia said that Indonesia can learn from Malaysia which had banned destructive activities at Sipadan island to protect coral reefs and its fishes.

“Malaysia closed down resorts and destroy buildings. Even visitors are limited by applying expensive entrance tickets,” she said referring to the island once the dispute object between Malaysia and Indonesia.

Nevertheless, she said, visitors were willing to visit the island despite of limited facilities. They were willing to queue, she said for one year. “Because, what divers are looking for are not luxurious facilities but beautiful coral reefs and its bidoversity,” she said. Ekuatorial team

There are no comments yet. Leave a comment!

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.