Protect Coral Reefs in Malaysia

RCM has been working in the South of Johor for about two years now. We've conducted various programmes, from seagrass sampling, to working with local stakeholders including government officials and even school students of various ages. Recently, our team conducted another hands-on educational activity for a group of students. 

30 Form 4 students, along with four teachers and two volunteers, participated in an intertidal walk session at Desaru Beach to observe and experience marine life up close in the low-tide zone.  During the walk, our colleagues shared brief insights into the presence of coral and seagrass in the area, their ecological significance, and the challenges they face in surviving in such extreme environmental conditions. Our aim is to deepen environmental awareness, cultivate appreciation for coastal ecosystems, and encourage hands-on learning about biodiversity and ecological interactions. 

Towards the end of 2024, all students and teachers from a local primary school in the South of Johor along with two volunteers, participated in a session to assess the growth of mangrove saplings and test water quality. The students learnt about the different growth stages of a mangrove, best practices in maintaining a mangrove nursery with optimum conditions as well as the use of certain equipment for water quality testing.  

In February, 24 students from the same school, along with all teachers and three volunteers, participated in a mangrove planting session. After five months of nurturing the saplings in a nursery, they were now ready to be planted. A total of 70 healthy mangrove saplings were planted at a patchy mangrove area along the coast of Kampung Pasir Gogok, Johor. Some parents who were present joined in and learnt about mangrove restoration efforts.   

Reef Check Malaysia (RCM) recently released our 2024 Annual Survey Report, which details the health and status of coral reefs across Malaysia for 2024. RCM, together with volunteer EcoDivers conduct reef surveys using the Reef Check method at more than 300 sites across Malaysia, looking at key indicators of coral reef health in those areas. 

A total of 315 sites were surveyed in 2024. The surveys are a continuation of a successful National Reef Check Survey Programme that has now run for 18 years. Survey sites, mainly near islands, include both established Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and non-protected areas. 

From 2023 to 2024, there was a slight decline in the percentage of Live Coral Cover (LCC), which is one of the key reef health indicators. This measures the percentage of the reef itself that is live coral - both hard coral and soft coral. LCC declined from 45.9% in 2023 to 44.7% in 2024, continuing a trend that originates from 2022. However, this percentage still falls within the "Fair" category of LCC. This deterioration can be attributed to a number of factors, key among which are unsustainable tourism, pollution and fishing activities. An additional impact this year was the 4th Global Coral Bleaching Event, which affected coral reefs around the world.

The data suggest that the health of Malaysia’s coral reefs is deteriorating. Other key findings from the surveys are:

• As in previous years, the abundance of most fish and invertebrate indicators continues to be low, suggesting either historical over-fishing or on-going fishing pressure.
• Disturbance and pollution indicators highlight the trends in the trajectory of reef health, with both local and global impacts evident during surveys. Approximately 83% of the islands/areas surveyed are impacted by discarded fishing nets and trash and 56% are impacted by anchor damage.

What can we do? RCM has been working towards building resilience: the ability of an ecosystem to either “shrug off” an external threat or impact (such as bleaching) or to recover from it.

We do this by addressing the local impacts that are affecting them. For example, we reduce physical damage to reefs by organising training courses for boat operators as well training programmes such as Green Fins and Eco-Friendly Snorkel Guiding for dive operators and snorkel guides. We also work on reducing impacts of coastal development by rigorously enforces planning controls in sensitive islands, while also protecting fish populations by managing fishing effort to ensure herbivore populations are maintained.

RCM has also been advocating for a greater role of local stakeholders (including communities, businesses, state and municipal government) through a “top-down” approach in marine resource management. We also recognise the need for several government agencies with different responsibilities to collaborate and integrate coral reef management between them.

Read more about our take on the results of the annual report here (Part 1 and Part 2).