Fishermen strike a balance with coral reefs

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 04/28/2010 11:13 AM

Nothing in nature goes unreciprocated.

Just ask the coral farmers of Panggang islet, Thousand Islands Regency, who earn a living from harvesting the coral reefs that stretch across the island’s 700 hectares of waterfront and in turn nurture the revival of that delicate ecosystem that once was on the verge of destruction due to illegal fishing activities.

“In 2004, the government banned the harvesting of naturally occurring coral and reinforced bans on the use of explosives and cyanide in fishing,” said Ilham, 29, a resident coral farmer of the islet.

“Since then, I have noticed that the corals have gotten healthier and have multiplied.”

Ilham started farming naturally occurring coral in 2001, but in 2004, following the ban, he switched to farming transplanted coral, a move he found difficult at first, but was empowered by training from the local administration, the national marine park and The Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation.

He said farming coral was similar to farming the earth.

First, he grafts branches from naturally occurring coral. These grafts, which are then transplanted on to a specially made rack of PVC pipes, will act as the primer seeds for the growth of the new coral.

Once the primary grafts, known as mother colonies, have begun to grow on the scaffolding, Ilham cuts them into smaller fragments and then transplants them onto new scaffoldings, which will then be sold off.

“I have 120 racks, 50 of which are for coral fragments. Every rack holds 64 fragments, which I sell for a minimum of Rp 5000 (55 US cents) each after they have reached desirables sizes within four to eight months,” he said, adding that the other 70 racks were mother colonies, which were not for sale.

He said coral farmers such as himself entered exclusive agreements with exporters, known as foster fathers, who would buy a full rack for Rp 250,000.

“The foster fathers supply the corals to countries in Europe as well as Singapore and the Philippines,” Ilham said.

“I can earn a minimum of Rp 500,000 for harvesting 100 corals per week, totalling around Rp 2 million per month,” he said.

Head of the resource development division of Terangi, Idris, said Ilham was one of 13 coral farmers who worked with 22 active foster fathers under the strict supervision of local officials who monitored the corals’ health as well as sales procedures.

“Farmers rarely buy their own racks because they have not learned how to manage their money properly to turn their profits into investment,” he said.

The head of the Thousand Islands’ third coral growing region, Sugeng Purnomo, said that rules governing coral harvesting stipulated that a three-party memorandum of understanding be signed by the foster fathers, farmers and the national park to determine sales prices and harvest quantity.

Farmers must also officially report how much they spend on planting and harvesting.

Muhammad Syahrir, from Terangi’s coral reef resource management division, said the coral reefs were vital because they protected the islands from sea erosion.

“Coral reefs are also home to many kinds of fish. Without them, fish stocks will become depleted, which would result in unemployment for many fishermen on the islands,” he said.

“Besides, corals are natural barriers that protect these fragile islands from erosion caused by waves.” (gzl)