Irresponsible fishing practices is main cause of pollution
KOTA KINABALU: When marine species get entangled in nets, they can die over time due to suffocation and starvation.
As time goes by, these nets – known as ghost nets or abandoned fishing nets – would also damage coral reefs, posing continuing threats to the marine ecosystem.
Sabah Dive Squad Club programme director Yong Lip Khiong said this is among the major threats that continue to haunt the marine ecosystem in the state.
During a recent ocean clean-up programme, some 78kg of debris, including plastic bottles, aluminium cans and abandoned nets, were retrieved from waters off the city.
Yong was among 126 volunteers who participated in the Borneo Ultra Ocean Clean-Up (BUOC) 5.0 involving 14 of his club members, security forces and other volunteers on Saturday.
“Irresponsible fishing practices leading to the abandonment of nets is among the main causes of such pollution,” said Yong, stressing that besides plastic bags and bottles, ghost nets are one of the biggest threats to marine life.
Yong dived with the team to a depth of 12m for more than an hour to remove part of a 100m net off Kota Kinabalu waters.
Another member, Mohd Saiful Md Saad, who has been diving for four years, said he has encountered marine species including rare guitar sharks, turtles and large fish that died after becoming trapped in ghost nets.
“The presence of plastic debris is equally harmful to the marine ecosystem, as seen in reports of turtles found dead after ingesting plastic, mistaking it for jellyfish, which is their natural food,” said the 39-year-old civil servant.
The fifth edition of BUOC was organised by the Royal Malaysian Navy through its Submarine Force Headquarters in conjunction with its 92nd anniver- sary celebrations.
Others who took part in the underwater clean-up included personnel from the navy, army, marine police, Fire and Rescue Department, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and Civil Defence Force.
Certified scuba divers from public and private organisations, such as Universiti Malaysia Sabah and Sabah Parks, also joined the effort.
