The government has to handle the problem well."Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Peoples Coalition for Fishery Justice (Kiara) highlighted the three key issues of illegal fish catching equipment, coastal reclamations, and mining activities being encountered in the preservation of coral reefs.
"The problems being faced in preserving the coral reefs in Indonesia are the three points mentioned above. The government has to handle the problem well," Kiara Secretary General Abdul Halim reiterated here on Friday.
He pointed to the widespread use of trawlers and explosives, which played a significant role in destroying the coral reef life.
Abdul Halim also emphasized that illegal land reclamation was rampant in coastal areas. It has occurred in 22 districts and can have a damaging effect on the ecosystem.
In the meantime, illegal sand mining in the sea is believed to produce materials that affect the respiratory and photosynthetic capabilities of the coral reef life.
Indonesias coral reefs cover an area of 25 thousand square kilometers, which are about 50 to 60 percent of those found in Asia and the Pacific, or about 25 percent of the worlds coral reefs.
(Uu.A014/INE/KR-BSR/F001)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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