Fish Bombing: the unrelenting destruction of coral reefs

It is widely acknowledged that destructive fishing practices (DFP) are among the most serious and immediate threats to coral reefs in South East Asia. References in the scientific literature can be found in the references page (McAllister,1988; Lemay et al.,1991; Gomez et al.,1994; Hair, 1994; Huber, 1994; ICRI, 1995; Pet-Soede & Erdmann 1998a and1998b, Oakley et al.,1999) as well as from East Africa (Makoloweka, 1998). Fish blasting at high intensity is particularly destructive because it transforms a reef from a productive and solid structure to an area of mobile rubble that takes years to recover at best, or induces an ecological phase shift that prevents corals from re-colonizing at worst.

Fish bombing is illegal, however it presents a major problem for enforcement authorities as it mostly takes place undetected. Random patrols are ineffective and too expensive due to the large sea areas that require patrolling. The long-term goal of our blasting research is to develop a tool for detecting and locating blast events as soon as they occur. Immediate notification of the location of a blast event provides a means for rapid and targeted enforcement by local authorities. It will also provide more quantitative data on the rate of blast fishing in selected geographical areas.